WHERE IS YOUR HOPE?

BIBLE PASSAGE:
Because God wanted to make the unchanging nature of his purpose
very clear to the heirs of what was promised, he confirmed it with an
oath. God did this so that, by two unchangeable things in which it is
impossible for God to lie, we who have fled to take hold of the hope
set before us may be greatly encouraged. We have this hope as an
anchor for the soul, firm and secure. It enters the inner sanctuary
behind the curtain, where our forerunner, Jesus, has entered on our
behalf. He has become a high priest forever, in the order of Melchizedek.
(Hebrews 6:17-20)

MEDITATION:
In a world that is unstable and becoming more unstable at a rapid pace,
where is your hope? For believers, our hope is in a Person – the Lord
Jesus Christ. He sits at the right hand of God and has given us these
instructions,
    “Do not let your hearts be troubled.
      You believe in God; believe also in me.”
      (John 14:1)

When He tells us to ‘believe’, He is saying to ‘place our hope’.
So, in essence, He is telling us to place our hope in God, and
in Him. Why? Because He has been resurrected and is now
in Heaven preparing a home for all who believe in Him.

The world can blindside us with many unpleasant surprises.
However, even though some lawmakers may think they are
in control, God is still in control. They might be in control
of the laws of the land, but they are not in control of our
ultimate and eternal future.

We have options for our focus, don’t we? We can focus on
the unpleasant things of the world and feel helpless to the
point of depression. Or, we can focus on what Jesus is doing
for us right now, and ‘believe in Him’.

When our focus is on the Lord Jesus Christ,
we will not have unpleasant thoughts because,
    “We have this hope as an anchor
      for the soul, firm and secure.”
      (Hebrews 6:19)

The world tries to please everyone and ends up pleasing
no one, but Jesus is interested in all of us and wants to
bless us. How comforting is that?

We may not agree with the choices of others, but we have
to remember that Jesus loves them too. He loves them the
same way He loved believers when they were still sinners
(before being saved).

We need to guard against developing a spiritual pride that
can be devoid of love. We should spend time reading about
Jesus and His followers in the bible. It is an exciting book
to read; it is filled with hope and expectations of a Heavenly
reward.

God has always been in control, He is still in control,
and He will always be in control.

Think about this for a moment.
    There is a pending election and you are voting for candidate A,
    but another person is voting for candidate B. Chances are you
    are not going to convince the other person to vote for candidate A,
    and he or she is not going to convince you to vote for candidate B.

    However you can explain why you are voting for candidate A
    without having the goal of changing the other person’s mind.
    When you do that, you will not be finding fault with the other
    candidate, but will be focusing on the positive reasons why you
    have confidence in the one you plan to vote for.

We need to believe what we say we believe, and be ready to
share with others why we believe it. We nee to let God be the
one who works on convicting them of their need for Him. If our
goal is to initiate a change in the other person, we run the a risk
of alienating them, instead of creating a desire in them to know
Jesus like we know Him.

Pray,
“Heavenly Father, remind me that my ‘real’ hope is
in You and Jesus. Reveal to me any areas of arrogant
pride that I may have. Make me aware of any hate I
may have for others, and help me to remember that
You love them as much as You love me. Teach me
that since You are my hope, I have a responsibility
to share my hope with others. Remind me that You
are the one who changes people, so that any efforts
to share my faith with others will be focused on telling
them why I believe in You and Jesus, and why that is
where I have placed my hope.”

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