PROLEPSIS | Thursday | 8/20

Practice the Future

Scripture: Matthew 6:10

“Your kingdom come. Your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.”

Every time we pray the Lord’s Prayer, we are asking the future to invade the present.

Your Kingdom come.

We believe a day is coming when God will make all things right.

A Kingdom of reconciliation.

A Kingdom of peace.

A Kingdom where outsiders are welcomed.

A Kingdom without greed or scarcity.

A Kingdom where death and suffering will finally be defeated.

That Kingdom has not yet been fully realized.

But in Jesus, it has already begun.

So Christians do something strange: We practice the future.

Because reconciliation is coming, we forgive now.

Because peace is coming, we become peacemakers now.

Because everyone has a place at God’s table, we practice hospitality now.

Because there will be no greed or scarcity in God’s Kingdom, we practice generosity now.

We live today according to God's promised tomorrow.

That is prolepsis.

Practice

Choose one way to practice the coming Kingdom today:

Forgive someone.

Make peace.

Welcome someone who feels like an outsider.

Give generously.

Encourage someone who is hurting.

Choose one concrete action and do it before the day ends.

Prayer

Father, let your Kingdom come and your will be done in me. Show me one place today where I can live according to your promised future. Through my words and actions, let someone experience a glimpse of your Kingdom. Amen.