Happy Friday, everyone!

You know, as I’ve been going around, a lot of us have been saying, “Hey, is it going to be spring yet? Or is it still winter?”

It seems like spring and winter are in a bit of a tug-of-war right now, at least where I’m living. How about for you?

You know, one day it feels like it’s warm, and you can leave the coats at home. And the next day, it’s cold again. It’s like the seasons can’t quite make up their mind. Almost spring, but not fully.

In Romans, Paul describes something that feels very similar to our spiritual life. He writes, “But if we hope for what we do not yet have, we wait for it patiently.” (Romans 8:25)

Paul is speaking into that space between what God has already begun and what is not yet complete. He describes creation groaning.

And even we, who believe feeling that same tension, are kind of wondering when, where, how. We know God’s promises, but we don’t yet see them fully. We feel the weight of what is still broken. We experience the waiting, the uncertainty, or the ache of that not yet.

But that’s where hope comes in. But not a hope we manufacture, not a patience that we produce on our own. Our hope is grounded in Jesus — and Jesus Christ crucified — crucified and risen.

Because in Him, God has already done what He promised. Sin is forgiven. Death is defeated. The future is secure. Even if we don’t yet see the fullness of it, it is already ours through Christ.

So when Paul speaks of waiting, he’s not pointing us inward to try harder. He’s pointing us back to God’s promises — promises delivered to us in His Word, promises that do not change even when everything around us does.

So we live in that not yet.
That not yet healed.
That not yet resolved.
That not yet complete.

But we don’t live in an uncertain time — because what Christ has finished, God will bring to completion.

So we wait again, not because we’re strong, but simply because God is faithful. Not because we can see the outcome, but because His promises are sure. God is still at work through His Word, by His Spirit, and even in these moments of not quite yet,

I do know that spring is coming. I’m looking forward to summer. I’m looking forward even more to the light of Jesus. Completely seen, realized, received that one day when He brings me home.

And I pray that you are confident this weekend in that same faith — that one day, we’re not home yet, but one day we will be.

And until then, we continue to live with hope because God is faithful.

Prayer
Lord Jesus, we thank You very much for again another opportunity to live in Your promise and to trust Your faithfulness to again experience Your goodness each and every day. And sometimes, Lord, we are in those moments where we, at the same time, are feeling broken. We’re feeling like we are slipping backwards. I feel like things are still failing, and yet we are mindful that You have called us to hope for those things we have not yet received. And so we trust You. We trust You. We trust Your faithfulness, Your goodness for us, especially because of Jesus. You proved that at the cross. You proved every single one of Your promises were true in Him. And so strengthen our faith as we go into this weekend, and especially if we’re feeling that not yet gloomy doom. Instead, lift our spirits to be more springlike as we again remember the resurrection, the death that He overcame, the sins that He overcame, and the devil that He fought and valiantly beat on our behalf. And so, Jesus, thank You for Your life. Thank You for Your death. Thank You for Your resurrection. Focus us in on You as we head into this weekend. In Jesus’s name we pray. Amen.

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