Eager Anticipation

"Now the Bereans were of more noble character than the Thessalonians, for they received the message with great eagerness and examined the Scriptures every day to see if what Paul said was true." Acts 17:11

I noticed a few days ago, that my snowdrops have pushed up above the soil and are just ready to bloom. I brought a few into the house this morning. Some would look at these small white flowers and be eagerly anticipating the beginning of spring.

There are many things that we eagerly anticipate. It could be an upcoming graduation, a wedding, getting a raise, a reunion with a loved one, etc. Today I am excitedly awaiting the snow that is predicted to hit later this afternoon and through tomorrow. The weather reports have predicted anywhere from 10-24 inches for our area. I can hardly wait, because I love the snow. We have nowhere to go this weekend, so the blizzard-like conditions that have been forecasted are not something to be feared.

My little snowdrops will soon be buried in a thick blanket of snow. Even though they will be covered, that promise of spring eventually coming will still lie beneath the surface. Just like I can't see any snow falling as I write this, I anticipate that it soon will be here and that I will again see the beauty of it.

I thought of this as I was driving home from taking my son to work this morning. There are many things that we eagerly anticipate and look forward to happening in our lives. For some it may be the excitement of watching the Super Bowl this coming Sunday. Our enjoyment is often over temporal things that will not last very long.

How much better would it be if we choose to eagerly anticipate our time with the Lord each day, to bask in His presence? What if we were excited about attending church, and couldn't wait to get there. Or we were more anxious to tell someone about a new spiritual truth that we just learned, instead of talking about the weather. How much different would our Christian walk be, if we choose to walk in the path of each day eagerly looking forward to our time together with our Heavenly Father?

Some food for thought as you go about your day. Ask yourself, "When was the last time that I eagerly anticipated my time with God?" What can you do to change that?