Utopia???

A long time ago a man named Thomas More wrote a book called Utopia. It is about this fictional place called Utopia that was perfect - paradise. The word Utopia has come to mean something that is perfect. I use this word occasionally in my life. Like a few weeks back, I was looking for a new phone. I couldn't find the perfect one. One would be the right size. Another would have the right amount of talk time. Another would have something else I really liked. Unfortunately, I couldn't find everything I wanted in one phone. So I said things like, "There is no Utopia when it comes to cell phones." (Yes, I know I am a dork - no need to tell me.)

Anyway...I have decided that part of the world's problem these days is that everyone is looking for Utopia. We want the perfect house - and if the one we have isn't perfect, we want to move. We want the perfect spouse - even though we aren't perfect ourselves. We want perfection at every turn and when we don't get it, it is a blow to our view of the world. And sometimes to our view of God.

I found these notes I had scribbled down from church about a year ago. Am I going to TRUST my ability to interpret circumstances in order to determine the nature of God? Or am I going to trust in the PROMISES of God? Am I absolutely confident that God IS with me? When the world rocks us, where do we stand? Do we stand? Or do we fall completely apart?

The fact is that life has problems. Unemployment can happen. Financial woes can overwhelm us. Spouses are going to be imperfect. Jobs are going to change or be difficult. People are going to die - or maybe just drift out of our lives. Children are going to make mistakes. Medical problems may change everything. Infertility may stir up feelings in you that you never knew were possible.

The question is: Do these (or any other life-altering events) determine how we view God? Do we think He changes because the world changes? I think we often feel that way - even though rationally we know that God is the same today as He was at the beginning. God never promised us Utopia here on Earth. As I said at the beginning, it is a fictional place. I am just thinking that maybe our search and longing for Utopia sets us up for disappointment. Whether that disappointment is aimed at God or another person or ourselves. We have become so focused on making our lives perfect that when it isn't, we believe God has forsaken us. That He has let us down when that is not His nature - ever.

I need to lay aside these expectations - and realize that I am letting my expectations affect how I view God and others. I am hoping to get past my utopian view and just know that God is and always will be - no matter what is happening (or not happening) in my little piece of the world.