REFLECTION
If someone were to ask you, ‘are your best days ahead of you or behind you?’, what would your answer be? For most of us this question would cause us some pause. There are many variables that might flash through our minds.

Our answer might depend on the stage of life we are in. We may be looking forward to having a family of our own, or if we have a young family, we may be looking forward to them being a bit older! We might think about the state of our health, or that of those we love. Do we see health declining, or do we see a hope for a stronger, more pain-free future? 

Maybe we would contemplate our relationships; our intimate ones, and our friendships. Do we have strong bonds to look forward to or just warm memories of those we have been close to?

Have we accomplished all that we set out to do in the world, or is there a task before us that challenges and inspires us? Do we have a drive, or a calling, that we still hope to fulfill? For many of us our thoughts about the future are a mixed bag with differing emotions including hope, worry, anticipation.

Colossians provides us with an answer to all of our musings about our ‘best days’. It gives us a beautiful picture of our great future hope. It teaches us that our life is found in Christ.

When our homes are threatened with events such as floods and cyclones some of us put our treasures in a ‘safe place’ to protect them, no matter what happens to our homes. This is somewhat analogous to the idea that we are ‘hidden with Christ’. We are being kept secure and safe, as the most precious of possessions. So, no matter what storm arises in our lives or in this world, we are found safe with Him.

The best days are truly still ahead for each of us. As we wait for the glory that is to come when Christ appears, we can wait with the certainty that we are totally secure in Him. We are His most guarded possession. His life is our life. While we wait, we also have the opportunity to come to know and worship Him more and more as each day passes. The best days are truly still to come.

PRAYER
Father, thank you that you have hidden us securely with Christ and that you will bring us into a glorious future. Thank you that you have guaranteed our joy and glory in the days yet to come. May your Spirit enable each of us to grow in our knowledge and intimacy with you even as we grow in years. We ask this in the name of Christ Jesus, our Lord. Amen.