Walking the Tightrope

Recap

Over the past few weeks, we've been exploring what heaven will be like and why it matters for how we live now. But this creates a tension, doesn't it?

When we live anticipating heaven and all that's to come, that's great. But we're actually still on earth. So how do we stay faithful here without getting dissatisfied or demanding or discouraged? And on the other end, how do we practice patience without just settling for how things are?

The Tightrope

There's a helpful image for this from Steven Whitmer, who wrote a great book on living for heaven called Eternity Changes Everything. He describes Christian life as walking a tightrope between restlessness and patience.

On one side is restlessness. A holy discontent with a broken world that results in longing for the new creation. It's actively hoping for heaven, living in light of it, aligning our decisions and identities to it rather than settling for now.

But too much restlessness and we fall off the tightrope, becoming demanding and anxious, and always trying to seize heaven now. I notice this in myself when I'm annoyed at every little inconvenience, grumpy when I'm hungry, impatient with inefficiency. Feeling cheated when something goes wrong. Sometimes even frustrated with God because things aren't going smoothly.

These reactions can reveal we're trying to enjoy all of God's promised future in the present. We're not trusting his timing. This is what the prosperity gospel does - it promises we can have all of God's blessings right now if we just have enough faith or give enough money. It’s trying to experience the perfection of the new creation whilst we’re still on a broken earth.

On the other side is patience. Godly patient is trusting God's timing and being content in the present even while we wait for the future.

But too much patience without restlessness can make us complacent. We become content with the present rather than content in the present. Which means we stop longing for heaven, stop caring about injustice, stop believing things could be better. And we become a bit apathetic or just asleep to the state of the world.

And most importantly, we stop partnering with God in those moments when we really do want heaven to touch earth and for someone to experience breakthrough or reconciliation or salvation.

These two things balance each other out. On the one side we’ve got restlessness, on the one side we’ve got patience, but if we lean too far either way we’ll fall off.

How to Walk the Tightrope

So how do we avoid falling off either side? We need to hold onto two things.

First, that heaven is definitely coming. And it is! It’s assured. Jesus has won. It’s coming just not quite yet. 

Second, that it's definitely good. And it is! It's going to be better than we can imagine, better than anything that we would possibly experience now.

So it's coming and it’s good. Those two things help us to practice patience in the present because we're confident about the future. And we can be restless in a good way, because we know what we're longing for actually matters and is actually coming.

What This Looks Like

Let me give you an illustration of what this tightrope might look like in real life.

There's a guy with a long-held dream to go to university to study theology and he gets offered a scholarship. Very exciting. But he’s married with four kids, and so pursuing a degree at this time would mean being away from his family a lot and rarely ever being in church.

So he weighs up the decision. He could get to do the thing that he’s really wanted to do. And great things might come from it. There’s nothing wrong with that decision in itself. But on the other hand, he’d rarely be at home, his kids are young, and there’s lots going on at church.

Approaching the decision with an eternal mindset, he decides to say no to the scholarship.

That's the tightrope. There's restlessness there - he's choosing what matters eternally (people - his family) over what would benefit him now. He's aligning his life with heaven rather than settling for earthly achievement. But there's also patience there - he's trusting he doesn't need to seize it all now. It might hurt to say no, but he’s aware that he'll have forever to study God's words and works in the new creation.

Does that make sense? It was restlessness to prioritise what lasts forever and patience because he was certain about the future and certain it would be great.

That decision only makes sense if you believe heaven is real and is coming and is better than anything earth can offer.

Now remember, that’s just an example and we have to follow God’s leading in all of our different circumstances and situations. But gosh isn’t that a tricky decision? Yet that’s the kind of decision we’ll be faced with when we’re living in light of heaven. I would love for the decisions we have to make to be simple yes or no decisions. But the truth is, when we’re living with an eternal perspective we’ll have to say some tricky yeses and some difficult nos. It’s the very fact that we’re living in light of heaven that helps us to make those decisions.

Other Ways This Might Play Out

This can play out in all kinds of ways. Because heaven is sure, we might find ourselves making decisions that look a bit unusual from the outside.

Maybe we delay things until heaven, knowing we'll experience them better there. Maybe you’ve wanted to see a great meteor shower but keep missing them, or visit Niagara Falls or learn to play an instrument properly. We'll have forever to do those things, and they'll be even better in the new creation. 

I’ve actually started to make a list of things that I’m looking forward to experiencing in Heaven, which I admit was a weird choice, but it stops me from trying to seize everything right now.

Or how else could it look?

It could look like persevering here on earth when things get really tough, because we know heaven is coming. And so whilst it might be really difficult, we can persevere knowing that isn't the end of the story.

Or we might choose to give to a family in need rather than going on that third holiday. Or invite those we love to church even though it feels a bit awkward. Or say no to something that would benefit us but cost us things that matter eternally.

Because Heaven is sure, we don't need to try to seize ahead of time what is already ours.

But also, because heaven is definitely coming, we don't need to become complacent. We don't just sit back and wait. That's not godly patience. Instead, we get to partner with God in what He is doing until that day comes. Making the most of the time we have on earth but trusting that isn't all the time we've got.

And we don't have to live with regret. Regret about the things we had to say no to, or didn't get to experience, or that our bodies aren’t being what they once were, because this world isn't the whole story.

Why This Matters

This actively goes against the prosperity gospel. It realistically means that we could be making all the right choices in light of heaven and still be facing poverty, exhaustion, persecution, unanswered prayers for healing or reconciliation or just a break for a minute.

And yet to live with an eternal perspective would still be the right choice.

And even more mind-blowing, the Apostle Paul tells us we can even find contentment right there. Because the truth of heaven means the truth that Jesus is the one who satisfies us. And that means we can experience satisfaction despite our circumstances.

Sticking with Paul, he lived in the present, but he didn't live for the present. He lived for what was to come. And I think that's why he was able to be so content in all kinds of circumstances. He could be hungry or full, either way he was content. His circumstances didn't control his wellbeing because his future was secure.

The Result

People who live on this tightrope well seem to have an unusual kind of joy.

They're not crushed by suffering because they know it's preparing them for forever. They enjoy good things deeply but they hold them loosely because they know it’s just a foretaste of the new creation.

I like how Stephen Whitmer puts it, those who walk the tightrope well “need the world less and love the world more”. They’re free from it yet fully for it.

Or C.S. Lewis writes it like this:

I must keep alive in myself the desire for my true country, which I shall not find till after death. I must never let it get snowed under or turned aside. I must make it the main object of life to press on to that other country and to help others to do the same.

That's the balance we're aiming for. Pressing on toward our true country while faithfully serving in this one. Restless patience.

Question

So our question for this week is: how’s your balance going on this tightrope?

Are you leaning more towards restlessness or patience? And how can you get back to the centre?

Let me remind you that in all of these things, it’s only the empowerment of the Holy Spirit that helps us to live in this way. We can’t be a healthy type of restless or a healthy type of patient by just trying to do it all on our own.

Prayer

Let's pray.

Lord would you give us an eternal perspective and help us to walk this tightrope well. Give us holy restlessness that refuses to settle for brokenness. But also give us a patience that trusts your timing. Help us to need this world less so we can love it more. And Jesus would you make us unusually joyful, knowing our future is certain and great. In Jesus' name, amen.