Grace MEMO: Five Foolproof Predictions for 2009

Grace MEMO: Five Failproof Predictions for 2009

 

This is an area where God likes to show off. A lot.

 

It’s that time of the year when psychics make their predictions for the future. But, given their accuracy rate, should they be trusted?

 

Fine, once in a while a bit of common sense, knowledge of current events, and good guessing means they hit their target (or at least get close and just claim credit anyway). But they’re wrong more than they’re right.

 

Take, for example, five psychic predictions for 2008 that failed:*

• “Crops lost through locust swarms in August,” as predicted by Elizabeth Anglin, a pychic, animal communicator, and spirit medium. Crops were lost to floods, but not to locust, and there’s a difference.
• Michael Smith claims special accuracy in the area of volcanic eruptions and predicted in 2007 that “a major supervolcano is poised to erupt, sending ash all over the earth.” Didn’t happen.
• Elizabeth Baron, another psychic, apparently received a message from a 14^th century Italian nun that a top U.S. general would be killed in Iraq and many soldiers would be sent home. No top military general in Iraq was even wounded, and our soldiers are still there.
• “A beloved popular entertainment figure will be injured and perhaps die as the result of a foolish stunt,” promised Michael Lente, a medicine man in Mexico. No such thing occurred.
• Finally, Nostradamus himself forecasted a global famine in 2008 and, thankfully, it didn’t come true.

 

If these self-proclaimed experts are so wrong about predicting the future, where does that leave common, ungifted folk like you and me? Must we guess with even less skill than theirs? Can we even hope for anything?

 

There’s good news here. This is an area where God likes to show off. A lot.

 

God’s track record with predictions boasts a 100% accuracy rate. Just page through the New Testament and note how many times God’s Word refers back to a prophecy in the Old Testament and says, in polite terms, “I told you it would happen.” Like the virgin birth of Christ or his resurrection, to name a couple biggies.

 

So, consider it safe to turn to God’s predictions and trust in them for your life, your well-being, and your happiness in 2009. Here are five you might appreciate:

• “Do not be terrified; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go” (Joshua 1:9). There isn’t a place or a problem in your life that will hide from God’s influence. So keep him involved.
• “Call upon me in the day of trouble; I will deliver you, and you will honor me” (Psalm 50:15). Stay tuned into God’s solutions to your dilemmas. They will not always be what you expect … but even better.
• “Better one handful with tranquility than two handfuls with toil and chasing after the wind” (Ecclesiastes 4:6). Prioritize contentment over consumption and you’ll discover a better you.
• “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled,” Jesus promises in his Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5:6). When your striving and ambition are aimed at a right(eous) relationship with God, you will find meaning and satisfaction. Imbalance here will create emptiness and a daily grind that goes nowhere fast. Put God first. Period.
• “Neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Romans 8:38,39). God’s love for you is stronger than death, stronger than your worries about the future, stronger than anything. Tap into his love. Believe it when it seems impossible. He will not stop loving you, forgiving you, and leading you.

 

Find your security in the God whose past performance does promise future gain, and whose promises always find their fulfillment in you – even when you can’t earn them or don’t notice them.

 

And stay away from supervolcanoes just in case the psychics get lucky.

 

 

PRAYER: Faithful Lord and God, you could be happy enough predicting occurrences in nature or world politics but you say that you’re not fulfilled unless your promises can come true in me. Open my eyes and ears to see and hear your wonderful words in the Bible, and inspire my heart to believe them even when I don’t understand. Amen.

 

A M essage of E xtraordinary M ercy and O pportunity from Pastor Daron Lindemann, Grace Lutheran Church, Milwaukee, WI