Sometimes we distrust God because we misconstrue his intentions.
We interpret them through the subjective lens of our desires, and when he fails to satisfy these longings, we lose confidence in him.
Jesus And His Disciples
The disciples of Jesus were thrilled when he said he intended to establish a kingdom on earth.
They assumed this meant he would soon move to Jerusalem, overthrow the Roman authorities, replace the Jewish religious leaders, and rule the world as an earthly king.
The disciples expected to be powerful ministers in this new kingdom. Instead, their dreams of glory died with Jesus on the cross.
The disciples were bewildered by this outcome.
They did not understand until after his resurrection that Jesus was carrying out a more elaborate, long-term plan than they had envisioned.
The disciples were right about the culmination of this plan, however.
Jesus will eventually establish a physical kingdom on earth, and the disciples will have special standing there.
They were just wrong about the timing.
God And Us
God designed us to enjoy abundance and prosperity in every aspect of life: physical, spiritual, material, and societal.
We would like this to mean that he intends to grant us everything our hearts desire while we live on earth.
However, like the disciples, we are right about God’s intended outcome but wrong about the timing.
We will experience all the abundance and prosperity God has planned for us in the next life. Currently, only a microscopic fraction of that goodness is available to us on earth.
Until we enter heaven, God’s priority is to foster true contentment in us through communion with him, independent of our circumstances.
Delayed Gratification
Why does God make us wait until the next life to fulfill all our desires?
Because the consequences of sin in and around us keep us from experiencing everything he deems good.
We will leave these impediments behind as we enter heaven.
There, God will give us more than our hearts currently desire and the world presently offers.
