With Thanksgiving in the United States being celebrated nation-wide tomorrow, we think back on all the many blessings that God has bestowed upon us. But how can we be thankful with all the sin and havoc that is going on in the world today? How can we rejoice when wars are breaking out and our peaceful lives are being disrupted by chaos and confusion? It's not easy. But if we turn to our Bibles and pray daily for those who constantly live in turmoil, even if we ourselves do not, we are living out our Christian roles. We cannot fix the problems in our world single-handedly; but we can turn to the One who can fix the problems of this world with a wave of His hand. Powerful and almighty, God can do anything. However, we live in a wicked world and will continue to until "our number is up" or the world's "number is up". We can pray though and give thanks to God for what He has done in the past, is doing in the present, and will do in the future. The future is in His hands and it's not our duty to find out what He's going to do next; we just need to have faith that whatever happens, it will be for His glory and He is always in control.
In Psalm 100:4-5 it says, "Enter into His gates with thanksgiving, And into His courts with praise. Be thankful to Him, and bless His name. For the LORD is everlasting, And His truth endures to all generations". From generation to generation, we've seen His mighty hand at work; through wars and famines, through good and bad, God has always been in control and we must remember that we have much to be thankful for. In fact, I'd like to share with you something that I've been doing for the past few Thanksgivings. I take a piece of paper and on the left hand side of it, I write "Happy Thanksgiving" in a downward motion like this:
"T
H
A
N
K...etc."
Then I write one thing-beginning with that letter-that I'm thankful for, such as this: "H"="Horses". It might not cover everything that you're thankful for, but that's when you can get out a notebook and write down everything that you're thankful for. Probably wouldn't take more than a few minutes and it serves as a good reminder on our days when nothing is going right for us and everything is against us. These lists will prove to you-whether you keep it on your refrigerator or memorize it-that God has been faithful.
I would like to share a few verses with you now on Thanksgiving.
When you're worried: (Philippians 4:6) "Be anxious for nothing, but in everything be prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God;..."
God's commands on being thankful: (Psalm 50:14) "Offer to God thanksgiving, And pay your vows to the Most High."
When in despair: (1 Chronicles 16:34) "Oh, give thanks to the LORD, for He is good! For His mercy endures forever".
We're never out of God's love. And that's something most important to be thankful for. Christ died on the cross for our sins. Important to be thankful for. Christ is preparing a heavenly home for us to live in. What a wonderful thing to be thankful for. No more tears, no more sorrows, no more pain, no more death, no more lying or cheating, no more stealing, and no more idolatry or adultery. Heaven is something to be thankful for. Wow! So many things to be thankful for and we've only scratched the surface. ;)
God bless,
Julianna
Thursday, November 22, 2012
Friday, November 02, 2012
His Hope!
[After I wrote this post, my pastor gave a sermon on Sunday night about this exact topic. It was very refreshing and I'd encourage you all to listen to it as well. http://sermons.gbccv.org/?sermon_id=1159 God bless.]
"...But hope that is seen is no hope at all. Who hopes for what they already have?" (Romans 8:24b)
I think I can safely say that everyone at some point in time has struggled with hope. Hope is not something we can handle, and we as finite human beings tend to have more faith when we can see or touch something. Hope often means waiting--waiting for something that we cannot see or cannot have...yet. In other words we are trusting that something will happen even if we have no clear evidence. Hope comes in different levels and forms. A four year old may hope for a certain gift. A twelve year old may hope to attend a birthday party with friends. A seventeen year old hopes to finish high school soon. A twenty-three year old hopes to find a job and get married. A forty year old hopes to see his grandchildren. It goes on and on...
"For you have been my hope, Sovereign Lord, my confidence since my youth." (Ps.71:5)
"...God has chosen to make known among the Gentiles the glorious riches of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory." (Col.1:27)
What is our hope? Our hope is God. Our hope is in God. When all circumstances seem to be failing, when all possibilities are ruled out, when there is absolutely no reason to keep going, when there is nothing left but us and God, then we will see where our hope is. If it is in man, situations, money, or anything else, then our life will crumble. Man is fallible. Those we love will let you down--no matter how hard we try to ignore it--they will. Our complete hope cannot rest in man. Situations change all the time. They may be comfortable one moment and intensely emotional another moment. They will change frequently and shatter normality. Money is never certain. Economies fluctuate and banks change. We cannot think that money will give us hope when we need it. Whatever else you may hope in will let you down. In a depraved world nothing can remain the same at all times. A hope in God is a hope that never disappoints.
Our hope is God, and only God. He is the only One who will never leave us--even when family and friends have left. He is the only One who can give true strength--even when our strength has ceased. He is the only One who be our Giver--even when all financial aid is gone. Our hope must be in God. If it isn't, our life will be nothing. We will have no hope of salvation, eternal life, or security in this world. If we can trust God for our salvation, why can't we hope in Him for the rest of our needs? His hope will never let us down--never in this life, and never in the next, either.
"Through him you believe in God, who raise him from the dead and glorified him, and so your faith and hope are in God." (1 Peter 1:21)
We can take hold of hope by trusting in God and by following where He leads even when we can't see the pathway ahead of us, and even when all the world is against us. To rest in His promises and daily surrender to His will is when we will embrace hope. It requires endurance during a waiting season. God doesn't call us to wait and hope in Him if He will not fulfill His promises. "We want each of you to show this same diligence to the very end, so that what you hope for may be fully realized." (Hebrews 6:11) Our hoping in Him does not go unnoticed, but we will need diligence in our daily tasks and perseverance to keep going when there is no other hope but God. He will reward our patience. "So do not throw away your confidence; it will be richly rewarded." (Hebrews 10:35) Be like Abraham who "when called to go to a place he would later receive as his inheritance, obeyed and went, even though he did not know where he was going...And so from this one man, and he as good as dead, came descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and as countless as the sand on the seashore." (Heb.11:8, 12) He had hope in an unchanging God, and God never, ever, once let him down.
Don't give up. Hope in the Lord and He will renew your strength. His mercies are new every morning. Don't rely on yourself. "If you put your hope in the sovereign grace and power of God and not in your own strength, or in the approval of others or in money or in fleeting pleasures or in status, then when the limelight shifts off your ministry and your life, and the praise of man is gone, and the glamour of self-denial evaporates and all the supports of men crumble, then you SHALL endure—with the endurance of hope." (John Piper)
"...But hope that is seen is no hope at all. Who hopes for what they already have?" (Romans 8:24b)
I think I can safely say that everyone at some point in time has struggled with hope. Hope is not something we can handle, and we as finite human beings tend to have more faith when we can see or touch something. Hope often means waiting--waiting for something that we cannot see or cannot have...yet. In other words we are trusting that something will happen even if we have no clear evidence. Hope comes in different levels and forms. A four year old may hope for a certain gift. A twelve year old may hope to attend a birthday party with friends. A seventeen year old hopes to finish high school soon. A twenty-three year old hopes to find a job and get married. A forty year old hopes to see his grandchildren. It goes on and on...
"For you have been my hope, Sovereign Lord, my confidence since my youth." (Ps.71:5)
"...God has chosen to make known among the Gentiles the glorious riches of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory." (Col.1:27)
What is our hope? Our hope is God. Our hope is in God. When all circumstances seem to be failing, when all possibilities are ruled out, when there is absolutely no reason to keep going, when there is nothing left but us and God, then we will see where our hope is. If it is in man, situations, money, or anything else, then our life will crumble. Man is fallible. Those we love will let you down--no matter how hard we try to ignore it--they will. Our complete hope cannot rest in man. Situations change all the time. They may be comfortable one moment and intensely emotional another moment. They will change frequently and shatter normality. Money is never certain. Economies fluctuate and banks change. We cannot think that money will give us hope when we need it. Whatever else you may hope in will let you down. In a depraved world nothing can remain the same at all times. A hope in God is a hope that never disappoints.
Our hope is God, and only God. He is the only One who will never leave us--even when family and friends have left. He is the only One who can give true strength--even when our strength has ceased. He is the only One who be our Giver--even when all financial aid is gone. Our hope must be in God. If it isn't, our life will be nothing. We will have no hope of salvation, eternal life, or security in this world. If we can trust God for our salvation, why can't we hope in Him for the rest of our needs? His hope will never let us down--never in this life, and never in the next, either.
"Through him you believe in God, who raise him from the dead and glorified him, and so your faith and hope are in God." (1 Peter 1:21)
We can take hold of hope by trusting in God and by following where He leads even when we can't see the pathway ahead of us, and even when all the world is against us. To rest in His promises and daily surrender to His will is when we will embrace hope. It requires endurance during a waiting season. God doesn't call us to wait and hope in Him if He will not fulfill His promises. "We want each of you to show this same diligence to the very end, so that what you hope for may be fully realized." (Hebrews 6:11) Our hoping in Him does not go unnoticed, but we will need diligence in our daily tasks and perseverance to keep going when there is no other hope but God. He will reward our patience. "So do not throw away your confidence; it will be richly rewarded." (Hebrews 10:35) Be like Abraham who "when called to go to a place he would later receive as his inheritance, obeyed and went, even though he did not know where he was going...And so from this one man, and he as good as dead, came descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and as countless as the sand on the seashore." (Heb.11:8, 12) He had hope in an unchanging God, and God never, ever, once let him down.
Don't give up. Hope in the Lord and He will renew your strength. His mercies are new every morning. Don't rely on yourself. "If you put your hope in the sovereign grace and power of God and not in your own strength, or in the approval of others or in money or in fleeting pleasures or in status, then when the limelight shifts off your ministry and your life, and the praise of man is gone, and the glamour of self-denial evaporates and all the supports of men crumble, then you SHALL endure—with the endurance of hope." (John Piper)
“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 6:19-20)
We have a hope that is
sure and steadfast. It will not fail. Ever. Though our hope may fail daily, His
hope will never cease to give us grace and strength. He will give us the grace
to see anything through. Our faith and hope must be in the One who calls and
our confidence in doing what He lays before us. The results are in His hands
because our tasks are beyond our strength. We do not choose to battle, but it
is come. And we can have hope, because the outcome of all our battles is
victory. We serve a risen Savior—a Victorious Savior!
“May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust
in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.” (Romans 15:13)
Sometimes we go through
trials
That are so hard to bear
We lift our face toward
heaven
“God are you really
there?”
I’ve asked that same question
And I’ve been down that
road.
Looking back I now can
tell you
He’s always let me know:
There is hope so hold
on;
There is hope.
God has sent me here to
tell you
There is hope.
And He knows just what
you’re going through
And what the future
holds.
As long as Jesus lives
There is hope.
In Christ,
Kaleigh
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