The Bible is full of promises, promises for the present but also for the future. To fully enjoy all the blessings that God has to give us, we need to bask in both sets of promises. Hebrews 4:9-11 ‘ There remains then, a rest for the people of God. For anyone who enters God’s rest also rests from his own work, just as God did. Therefore, let us make every effort to enter that rest so that no-one will fall by following their example of disobedience.’
Look at God’s promise for today and our own time in this world, ‘I am with you, I will bless you’. Genesis 12:1-3. Day by day God is blessing us with His gifts. Sometimes we are so fraught by the problems of the world that we miss seeing the blessings, they pass us by. But God still gives and gives again. I know some of you have more difficult lives than others but God is still giving you gifts. We don’t want to miss them. By staying close to God and His promises for today, we will appreciate them more.
Then there are His promises for the future. ‘In my Father’s house are many mansions, if it were not so, I would have told you.’ John 14:2 The heaven described in the book of Revelation is the promise of a presence with Him. It is a promise we can remember and look forward to. We have God with us now, but we haven’t reached there yet. The art is to appreciate both. While on earth it is no good ‘being so heavenly minded that we’re no earthly good.’ This life still has to be lived and enjoyed . Our heaven is not yet. ‘Now we see through a glass darkly but then face to face.’ 1 Cor 13:12