On Optimism

“And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose”  –Romans 8:28

Every one of the great revolutionaries from Isaiah to Shelley, have been optimists. They have been indignant, not about the badness of existence, but about the slowness of men in realizing its goodness. –G.K. Chesterton, The Defendant

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I have been accused of being an optimist.

Sometimes optimism can get us into trouble. It can cause us to trust others more than we should, to have unreal expectations about the future, or be idealistic in the face of a world that is obviously broken.

But optimism can also be a powerful force. It is optimism that causes us to believe things can be better than they are, that there is great hope for the future of The Church, and our church, and that we have many reasons to be joyful as we go through our lives.

If we were to look on things from a cosmic vantage point, I think an optimistic view would be well founded. As we are told in Romans, “all things God works for the good of those who love him.” And we know this: God has fulfilled his promises from old, sending his Son, as savior to the world. Christ has come, he has conquered death to grant new life to his people, and he promises to return, on a final day, when all things will come to fullness in him, when all evil will be swallowed up, and when all justice will be administered with perfection.

Truly, we have reason to be optimistic.

~Pastor Mike Middaugh