HOPE

Monday October 22

Hebrews 11:1 

Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.

It is so hard to live a Christian life, most of the time we know the right thing to do, but it's so hard to do it alone. We have hope though, some times we forget that there is a very real someone standing right here beside us holding us up. 

How do we know these things? Because we believe them to be true! As followers of Christ, we carry with us a personal awareness that when all the chaos of this life is over we are heading to heaven to live the rest of our eternity with our creator. 

How wonderful to live in the understanding that God is with us, always! That we don't have to worry about what comes next, after we take our last breath and leave this world.

What we have is a treasure, it isn't just a simple hope but a firm assurance that God is here with us, and when we leave this earth we go to the place He has prepared just for us. 

I can't begin to think of anything here on earth that even comes close to the knowledge that you and I have as believers. Can you imagine being the person who in a crisis, even in dealing with every day life does not know what is coming next? 

When I watch shows on TV about the afterlife, I always wonder how some one who believes in reincarnation can live without being horribly depressed... Can you imagine what it is like to be the person in another religion who never has the opportunity to be forgiven? Instead they are constantly in a war with themselves, trying to be "good enough" to make it. We have some thing so much better, we have the hope that God gives us through salvation that we can only receive as a gift from our Lord and Savior Jesus the Messiah. How blessed we are. 

Use your Bible Study time today to read this scripture and focus on Just what it is we have in Christ.  Thank God for what He has done for us, what He is doing now in our lives, and what He will do for us in the afterlife. We have Hope that there is some thing better just around the corner. This scripture is so well explained in the Message translation of the Bible. Savor what God has done for you... You are special to Him and nothing can take the promise He has given you away, nothing can separate you from His love...  

Romans 8:31 (MSG)

31-39 So, what do you think? With God on our side like this, how can we lose? If God didn't hesitate to put everything on the line for us, embracing our condition and exposing himself to the worst by sending his own Son, is there anything else he wouldn't gladly and freely do for us? And who would dare tangle with God by messing with one of God's chosen? Who would dare even to point a finger? The One who died for us—who was raised to life for us!—is in the presence of God at this very moment sticking up for us. Do you think anyone is going to be able to drive a wedge between us and Christs love for us? There is no way! Not trouble, not hard times, not hatred, not hunger, not homelessness, not bullying threats, not backstabbing, not even the worst sins listed in Scripture:

They kill us in cold blood because they hate you.
We're sitting ducks; they pick us off one by one.

None of this fazes us because Jesus loves us. I'm absolutely convinced that nothing—nothing living or dead, angelic or demonic, today or tomorrow, high or low, thinkable or unthinkable—absolutely nothing can get between us and God's love because of the way that Jesus our Master has embraced us.

To me this is one of those Ah scriptures, the one's that make you sit back and breath deep. God loves me, he loves you, there is nothing in this world that Can separate us from Him. Not even the poor choices we make in life, or the poor choices of others that may put us in miserable situations. IF GOD IS WITH US, WHO CAN STAND AGAINST US!? Think about it.