When I'm Older
By: Julie Willoughby
Julie, dressed up as Olaf, with her daughter, Claire.
My daughter, Claire, and I recently watched one of our favorite movies, Frozen 2, together during a girls’ night! If you have not had the opportunity to watch this movie, I would highly recommend it! It’s definitely one of our favorites and we enjoy singing along to many of the songs in this movie.
While I was watching this movie with Claire a few weeks back, I couldn’t help but think about the song Olaf (the adorable snowman) sang and how much it convicted me! A verse in the song says,
“This will all make sense when I am older
Someday I will see that this makes sense
One day, when I'm old and wise
I'll think back and realize
That these were all completely normal events.”
If we’re being honest, I think we say this a lot! We may not necessarily speak the exact words of “When I’m older” because, well, some of us are older! But, what about if I asked you some of these questions: “When this happens…” or “When I do this…” or “When the kids grow up…” or “When I get a new car” or “When I get a new house” or “When I get a different job” or “When this situation changes…” I am sure many of us could relate to Olaf in thinking that things will someday “make sense” or we’ll have it all figured out.
The scary thing in thinking this way is two-fold. First, it can be easy for us to not be present in the moment when we have this mindset of getting through something so we can get to the other side. So often God is calling us to the “dark enchanted” forest, like Olaf, so that He can work in and through us. Second, many times we put our faith and hope in material or worldly things instead of putting our faith in God. If we fully trust God, it will be easier to be present in the moment and to trust that God is with us in every circumstance, not just in the “when I’m older” phase.
God doesn’t ask us to always “like” the circumstances we are in, but God does ask us to be present in our everyday moments, even the yucky ones, and to trust that He’s making sense out of every part of our lives. A bible verse that always directs me back to being present in the moment is from Psalm 46:10: “He says, “Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth.” This verse reminds me that we don’t have to wait until tomorrow or wait until a certain event happens in our life to be content in the present. Sometimes all it takes is a moment to remember that we can be still and allow God to direct us.
God is working in this very moment and season of your life and waiting for it to be over to “make sense” could cause you to miss out on what He’s trying to teach you today.
Let’s not wait until “we’re older” to be present in what God is doing in our lives today. He has a good, good plan for you and that starts now!