It Gets Better

What is your outlook on life?  When you look into the future, do you see things getting better or worse?  I’m not just asking about the power of positive thinking.  The question isn’t whether the glass is half-empty or half-full right now.  It’s more about what’s ahead.  Is the water level rising or dropping in my glass?  How will it all turn out?  Am I going to end up with an empty glass or a full one when all of this is done? 

Let’s suppose you have a generally positive view of the world.  To you, things are going to get progressively better until the cup is full.  However, as many advances and comforts we add to our lives, there is always something to drain the cup.  The evils in the world persist.  Hatred is met with hatred.  Relationships struggle.  Our bodies are plagued with sickness, injury, aging and eventually death.  Optimism is great, but real life paints a pretty bleak picture. 

Perhaps we should instead be realists and have a generally negative view of the world.   Then, when all the bad things of the world happen, we won’t be surprised.  Who wants to deal with the roller coaster ride of trying to be optimistic while the world continually drags you down?  It’s better to just be down and stay down.   At least it’s a little closer to reality.

Is it?

The story of Jesus, our Lord, gives us a unique perspective that is both real and optimistic.  We believe it gets better, but maybe not right now.  Jesus called us to follow him and to learn from his example.   Let’s use the glass example to describe the journey of Jesus. 

Jesus is present with God the Father in the creation of the world
World’s Glass Full
Humans disobey God and embrace selfishness
World’s Glass Level Dropping
Jesus enters the world as the perfect example of a human being
Jesus’ Glass Full
Jesus allows himself to suffer and die for the sins of the world. 
Jesus’ Glass Level Drops to Empty
Jesus is resurrected from the dead and ascends into heaven
Jesus’ Glass Full
Jesus promises us that he will return to restore the world to original beauty
World’s Glass Full

The Christian outlook on life is tied directly with Jesus’ death and resurrection.  God designed us to live in perfect love and truth.  Our glasses are supposed to be full.  Our selfishness and the sin of the world causes the water level in our glasses to drop.  This is where we skip to the end of the story.  Since Jesus was raised from the dead, we have the promise that one day our glasses will be full again.  In this way, we are optimists.  It gets better!   We have a perfect eternal life to look forward to! 

In the meantime, things aren’t so rosy.  Our glasses are still emptying.  It’s important that we continue to learn from Jesus’ example.  Even though Jesus was mocked, beaten and brutally killed, God used it to bring good.  Forgiveness was won for us through Jesus’ suffering.  In a similar way, God uses our faith in the midst of suffering to be a blessing to others and ourselves.  Since we believe in the resurrection, we can endure the suffering of this world knowing that eternity awaits us.  This is where the optimism of eternal life meets the reality of suffering.  Yes, we know our cups are draining to the bottom, but one day our cups will be full, never to drain again.  Hope.  It’s the unique outlook of a Christian.  Simply put, it gets better!