BIRTH OF A LIVING HOPE (Tuesday)

Aug 2, 2022
2 min read

1 Peter 1:3-9

Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil, or fade. This inheritance is kept in heaven for you, who through faith are shielded by God’s power until the coming of the salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time. In all this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials. These have come so that the proven genuineness of your faith—of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire—may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed. Though you have not seen him, you love him; and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy, for you are receiving the end result of your faith, the salvation of your souls.

I’ve gone through some trials in my life—I’m even going through some right now. I wish they weren’t there, but God wants me to know through His Word that these trials are important to my spiritual development.

Through these trials, I realize HOPE. It’s not like I haven’t thought about hope before, but in the midst of the trial, I see God’s Perspective—He has opportunity to work in my life and show Himself to me. The hope He offers is not a wish…it’s a living hope…a verifiable fact…that He has given me an inheritance that is eternal. If I focus on this eternal perspective instead of my circumstance, I will experience joy. This joy causes me to re-joy-ce…to re-live that joy over and over, day after day. That joy fuels my faith, producing genuine love for Christ that I can share with those He has placed around me. The joy, hope, and love assure me of my salvation.

THINK ABOUT THESE THINGS: This life is not about what I want, or the control I think I have or don’t have. It’s about Jesus Christ, the Son of the Living God, pronouncing that the very things I am going through today are for a reason, and while I don’t know the reason, the outcome will benefit my soul by lavishing me with love, hope, and joy. What will I do with these things now that the all-powerful God put these all-powerful and life-changing attributes in my heart? I need to share these things with others—especially my family and friends, so they can feel this same power I feel today.

Lord, my soul is hungry and famished. It needs to be fed. Please give me spiritual food which will fuel my faith through Your living HOPE! Amen.

May you be blessed,

Chaplain Wayne Ruckman