how do you view the future?
Have you ever considered how you think about the future? You might consider this question silly…you’re too busy doing things in the present to do something as introspective as considering how you approach the future. But everyone, whether you’re aware of it or not, has a way that they view the future. And while it might sound inconsequential, it’s anything but. Why? Because you how perceive the future dictates how you live today.
the first way
The default way of thinking about the future is that of an idealistic optimist. An idealistic optimist believes that the future will go well and that they shouldn’t expect to have any major problems in life. Almost every young person in the United States begins as an idealistic optimist, confident that if they are a good person, their life will go well and everything will turn out great.
Our culture bolsters the natural idealistic optimism of our youth through phrases like:
You can be anything you want.
If you can dream you can do it.
The sky is your limit.
Idealistic optimists take these messages to heart; they look at the future and believe that life will work out perfectly. While they know that bad things can happen, they’re certain that a good person like them won’t ever experience a major struggle, setback, or difficulty.
So generation after generation of idealistic young people enter adult life, optimistic about their exciting plans for life, confident that the future will go according to their plan. They make bold promises to the older generation about how well life will go for them and how much good they will accomplish.
But sooner than later, these young people hit a wall: things aren’t working out as easily or as quickly as they thought. Instead of rapid success, they find that everything in life is much hard than they expected. They hit 25, and then 30, and are flustered by the fact that not only have they not achieved their “perfect life” yet, but they feel farther away from them than ever. Their college dreams seem like a romantic notion from some out-of-touch 22 year old.
On top of this, life starts to become scary. Bad things start happening to people around them, and sometimes even to them. People their age get divorced, laid off from work, lose a parent, experience a stock market crash, and even learn that they have cancer. As you leave your twenties behind and get closer and closer to forty, you begin to realize that the world is a scary, crazy, and broken place.
the second way
By this point, many people have shed their idealistic and optimistic view of the future and instead adopt a new way of seeing the future, that of a realistic pessimist. A realistic pessimist is a person who, after starting life as an idealistic optimist, realizes that life isn’t some Walt Disney-fueled dream where everyone is happy and everything goes your way. As they’ve sobered up to the difficulties and challenges of life, their idealistic future has popped, and they now see the future as a mysterious unknown, where chaos reigns and bad things can strike at any time.
Realistic pessimists are quick to remind you of all of the ways that things could go wrong. If you want to get married, they’ll tell you that 50% end in divorce. If you want to start a small business, they’ll tell you that 80% of them don’t make it five years. If you want to move to a big city or different country, they’ll point out every conceivable way for you to get murdered or robbed. They are always quick to remind you of the problems of any plan, the downsides of any new idea, and the reasons why being optimistic about the world is a fool’s errand.
Realistic pessimists shut down over time. They don’t take risks. They don’t start new things. They accept life as it is given to them and never push back. They rarely start new businesses or non-profits or friendships or initiatives. Why make life busier and harder and more stressful, especially when it’s unlikely to work anyways. It’s not that they’re trying to be an Eeyore, it’s just that they’ve learned enough about life to know that the world is unpredictable, risky, and dangerous, so they hunker down to protect themselves and the people they love from hurt and failure.
While the idealistic optimist believes that everything in the future that could go right will, the realistic pessimist is the opposite; they believe that everything in the future that could go wrong will. They no longer see the future as a golden brick road to their dream life, but rather are just trying to dodge the potholes of life. They’ve rejected the naïveté of the idealistic optimists and see big dreams and ideas to change the world as pointless. They just hope that as they get older they can hang on and keep from having anything bad happen to them.
the third way
While these first two approaches to the future are the most common, fortunately, there is a third way to view the future, from a perspective of a realistic optimist. A realistic optimist understands that life is full of challenges and difficulties but believes that with wisdom, character, and a reliance on God, things can turn out well.
The realistic optimist is different from the idealistic optimist and the realistic pessimist because they have a Christian view of the future. Unlike the idealistic optimist, the realistic optimist believes in the reality of sin and the brokenness of human nature. But unlike the realistic pessimist, they believe in the goodness of God, as evidenced by how the gift of His creation and the promises of His involvement. The realistic pessimist understands that the world is a broken place, but they also recognize that a good God is in control and is working for the good of His children.
Because of this, the realistic optimist can get married, start businesses, have and raise children, take risks, and do hard things, not because they are any more talented than the other two types, but rather because they know that God is with them every step of the way and is working for their good.
Realistic optimists look at the future knowing that:
God created the world, which means that there is a rhyme and reason to how things work. The world and business and relationships aren’t some mysterious black box, but rather can be understood and improved by studying God’s creation and gaining wisdom on how it operates. God designed the world to work a certain way, and when we understand that, we can make all kinds of discoveries and advances and improvements in every area of life.
God wants to give good things to his children, which means that they aren’t living in a cold and indifferent universe, but rather are continually cared for by their Father in heaven. They understand what Jesus said in Matthew 6: “If you then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him!”
God gives other people to help, which means they understand that God gives them resources, to understand how to grow in their ability to work together and accomplish more as a group than they could individually. They read books, consult history, go to conferences, and build relationships with others, knowing that other people have wisdom, skills, and gifts that they could benefit from.
God works for their good, which means that they know that it’s not on them to make everything happen for themselves. Instead, they partner with God as they start businesses, plant churches, and break new ground, knowing that He wants to use them to love and serve others. They have the attitude of Jonathan in the Bible, who, when confronted by a squad of enemy soldiers, said to his armor-bearer, “Let’s go over to their outpost…perhaps the Lord will act on our behalf.” They know that God is up to something good in this world, and is working to accomplish it, even if they have setbacks, disappointments, and failures along the way.
But instead of being realistic optimists who trust in God and his promises, we are so often like the Israelites as they were about to enter the Promised Land. They were so excited about the prospect of this new land that they approached the future through the view of idealistic optimists: they could already taste the bread and wine and celebrations ahead of them.
But then 10 of the Israelite spies came back and gave them a realistic picture of the land: the people living there were big and tough and scary. In an instant, 99% of the Israelites become realistic pessimists. After they heard the report from the 10 spies, they cried out in fear: “How are we ever going to defeat these giants? We should get rid of Moses, give up this foolish journey, and go back to Egypt!”
Only two spies, Caleb and Joshua, believed that they should continue and encouraged the people that they could go up and take possession of the land. Caleb and Joshua didn’t deny the report of the other spies, but they also didn’t succumb to the pessimistic fears of certain failure.
Why were these two men able to have a realistic yet optimistic view of the future? Because they believed that the Lord was with them. You can hear it in Caleb’s speech:
The land we passed through and explored is exceedingly good. If the Lord is pleased with us, he will lead us into that land, a land flowing with milk and honey, and will give it to us. …And do not be afraid of the people of the land, because we will devour them. Their protection is gone, but the Lord is with us. Do not be afraid of them.”
They could take a realistic and optimistic view towards the future not because of their strength or numbers or cunning, but rather because God was with them and would deliver their new home to them.
Do you want to view the future through the lens of a realistic optimist? You can only see life this way if you believe the same thing that Caleb and Joshua did. That despite all of the ups and downs ahead of you, God promises to be with you through it all and to work on your behalf as you walk alongside Him.
When you understand that, you can be set free from your youthful idealism or your adult pessimism to attempt great things for God as you expect great things from God. As the Apostle Paul said in Ephesians 3:
Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever!
This perspective will allow you to go forward into the future with faith, trusting that God has plans to prosper you and not harm you, plans to give you a hope and a future.
