What Does Jesus Promise?

I want Jesus to be my own personal genie. That would be stinking awesome. I would be 3 inches taller, one cup size bigger, and I would be a Lululemon ambassador in Italy eating chocolate and carbs all day and washing it all down with vino and burning it off in stylish yoga gear. But Jesus is not our personal genie.

Jesus never promises us health, wealth, or happiness. He never promises He will answer our prayers, or hopes, or dreams the way we want Him to or in the timing that would coordinate well with our iCal.

What Jesus does promise is to make things right one day and in the meantime to be with us as we go through life. I believe both of those promises are better than health, or wealth, or happiness. Let me unpack that a bit.

Life is messy. You either just got out of a mess, are currently in a mess, or are on the brink of heading into a new mess. Why? Because that is life. It’s messy. Don’t get me wrong, life has these amazing moments of joy, and fun, and peace. But life is messy.

Jesus promises that He won’t just make the mess go away. He is going to make it right.

Jesus also promises that although we are in a journey through the mess before He makes it all right, He is going to be WITH us through it all (Matthew 28:20b).