Futurewise, full of prophetic anticipation

There is a delicate dance between the already and the not yet as we engage our human expectation with prophetic revelation. It is the holy tension that pulls us forward, refusing to let us settle, stirring us from complacency into a place of deeper longing and trust. It is the spark that ignites our imagination, calling us to see not just what is, but what could be. To live in prophetic anticipation is to live with a heart wide open to the whisper of God, attentive to the rhythms of His Spirit, and alive to the unfolding story of His kingdom.

There’s a kind of beauty in the waiting, isn’t there? Not the kind of waiting that’s passive or resigned, but the active, hopeful waiting that leans into the promise, even when the promise feels distant. It’s the waiting of a gardener who plants seeds in faith, trusting the unseen work beneath the soil. It’s the waiting of a child on tiptoe, straining to catch the first glimpse of the long-expected arrival. It’s the waiting of the saints through the ages, lifting their eyes to the horizon, holding onto the certainty that He who promised is faithful.

Prophetic expectation asks us to live with eyes wide open, not just to the physical world around us but to the deeper reality of God’s presence and purpose. It’s easy to get stuck in the here and now, caught up in the noise of daily life or the weight of unanswered prayers. But prophetic anticipation lifts our gaze. It calls us to see with the eyes of faith, to recognise that God is always at work, weaving threads of redemption through even the darkest of nights. It whispers to us that the story isn’t over, that there’s more to come.

This kind of anticipation doesn’t come without its challenges. It requires courage to hope when hope feels fragile. It demands trust when the path ahead is unclear. And it invites us into a place of surrender, where we let go of our timelines, our agendas, and our need for control. To live in anticipation prophetically is to admit that we don’t have all the answers and that we are utterly dependent on the One who holds the future. It’s to embrace the mystery of faith, knowing that God’s ways are higher than ours and His timing is always perfect.

There is a tension in prophetic expectation that can be uncomfortable. It’s the tension of standing in the gap between the promise and the fulfilment. It’s the ache of longing for something we cannot yet see, the holy discontent that reminds us that this world is not as it should be. But it’s in this tension that we are shaped and formed. It’s in the waiting that our faith is refined, our character deepened, and our dependence on God strengthened.

One of the beautiful things about prophetic outworking is that it’s not something we carry alone. As the people of God, we are called to journey together, to remind one another of the promises of God and to encourage one another to keep going when the road feels long. In community, we find the courage to keep hoping, the strength to keep trusting, and the joy of shared anticipation. Together, we become a living testimony to the faithfulness of God, a people whose lives point to the reality of His kingdom.

The world needs people who are willing to dream big dreams, to take bold steps of faith, and to live with a sense of expectancy that God is on the move. It needs people who can see beyond the brokenness and chaos, who can envision a future shaped by God’s love and justice. And it needs people who are willing to wait, to trust, and to hold onto hope even when hope feels hard to find.

Prophetic anticipation is not about escapism or wishful thinking. It’s not about ignoring the pain and struggle of the present. Instead, it’s about bringing the reality of God’s promises into the here and now. It’s about living in such a way that our lives become a signpost to the world, a reminder that God is faithful, that His kingdom is coming, and that His love is making all things new.

As we embrace the expectation of the prophetic, the Spirit of God is with us, guiding us, strengthening us, and stirring us to keep moving forward. Even as we wait for the fulfilment of His promises, we are invited to experience His presence in the here and now. We are invited to taste and see His goodness, lean into His love, and participate in His work of renewal and restoration.

So let us live with hearts full of hope, eyes fixed on Jesus, and lives open to the movement of His Spirit. Let us be a people who live in the light of His promises, who dare to dream, and who walk in faith, trusting that the best is yet to come. For in prophetic anticipation, we find not only the strength to keep going but the joy of knowing that we are part of something far greater than ourselves—a story of redemption and renewal that will one day be fully revealed in the glory of His kingdom.