Inspired Futures

The future is in you now. This future is reality in God’s mind – and in your mind – if you are attuned to it. Most of us have some awareness of the future that is in us. We have moments when we catch our breath in wonder as we briefly glimpse possibilities vastly preferred over our past and present. We intuit something great and grand and from God percolating just beneath the surface of our lives. -Terry A. Smith in TEN

There is a couple in our congregation, both physicians, who have lived out the principles of TEN. When I first met this delightful couple fourteen years ago, they were recently emigrated from India and had been living in the United States for about two years.

Abraham was finishing his residency in pediatric medicine and his wife Ruby was working to obtain the multiple licenses she needed to practice the psychiatry here in the States that she’d practiced in her native land. These plans – to graduate from medical school and simply succeed at starting a new life here – were the borders of Abe and Ruby’s expectations.

They dedicated their lives to God and, through practical teachings about preferred futures, made a decision to partner with God to see what could happen in their lives. As their minds and spirits were stimulated by these possibilities, their goals became more expansive and intentional. They started to think about the positive repercussions their lives could have on the futures of others.

Fourteen years later, these two people are thriving in their medical careers. But more importantly, their decisions have allowed them to impact thousands of lives. Abraham has acquired three pediatric practices serving roughly ten thousand patients. One of his practices was specifically developed so that one hundred percent of its profits would be given away over the course of the first three years – thus investing in and spawning better futures for many lives through his generosity. Another practice, located in an urban area, was transformed from a walk-in clinic to a paperless, appointment-only practice, allowing for optimal and timely care for less-privileged people. Ruby served as the chief psychiatric resident at the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey, and now owns her own counseling practice, Advent Behavioral Clinics, and teaches at a local college.

While they didn’t realize it then, both Abe and Ruby were pregnant with a better future and had to awaken to the abundant capabilities that could surface in their lives. They are living beyond their initial vision today because they decided to believe for more, act for more, sacrifice for more and, as a result, this better future has given birth to all kinds of positive dynamics in their social lives, finances, the community, as well as through their significant leadership in the local church. Fourteen years ago, their future was inside them, and because they chose to set foot on the pathway to more and better life, today, they are living a TEN.