There is a saying, “hindsight is 20/20.” According to Phrase Mix, which defines phrases on the internet that means, “that you can easily tell what you should have done in the past, but it’s harder to decide what to do in the future.”
Well, in your walk with God, I believe that “hindsight is 20/20” but my definition would be slightly different. I would say that,
“you can clearly see now what God did for you in past situations. Thus, you can trust him now, to do at least the same or better, in the future.”
Let’s look at a scriptural example of my definition, in the life of David.
As a young boy, David was tasked with watching the sheep; all alone, by himself, day after day. He had to keep them close to home, fed and protected. Unfortunately, on many occasions wild animals came to challenge David’s role as shepherd. Through the scripture, David tells us in I Samuel 17:34-35,
“But David said to Saul, ‘Your servant has been keeping his father’s sheep. When a lion or a bear came and carried off a sheep from the flock, I went after it, struck it and rescued the sheep from its mouth. When it turned on me, I seized it by its hair, struck it and killed it. Your servant has killed both the lion and the bear.’”
David was using his hindsight in this moment concerning future events he was planning on engaging in. Goliath was taunting the armies of Israel and winning! No one would dare fight him. His offer was generous, just send out one man to fight, but they were all too afraid. None of them remembered any of the collective hindsight of the children of Israel. They didn’t remember being freed from Egypt, Pharaoh’s army being defeated, or crossing the Red sea. No one seemed to recall any of the victorious battles God help them with while taking the promised land, not Jericho, …nothing.
But David did remember! He remembered God’s faithfulness to his people, collectively, and his personal faithfulness to him. He was able to say with confidence, I Samuel 17: 32 & 37,
“David said to Saul, ‘Let no one lose heart on account of this Philistine; your servant will go and fight him. The Lord who rescued me from the paw of the lion and the paw of the bear will rescue me from the hand of this Philistine.’”
And guess what, he was right!
God delivered Goliath into the hand of a young shepherd boy. David used his hindsight of God’s activity in his life as a blessing, to propel his faith for his future.
Learn from this lesson, use what you have seen God do for you to give your faith a boost for your future. Ask for more and expect more. God was faithful before, why would you expect anything less.
If you are a newbie, new to God and faith, and don’t have any hindsight to look at use your Bible. Look at other people’s testimonies or visit our Hall of Faith for a few good ones to build your faith on. If God did it for others, he certainly can do it for you!