Life is certainly changing. We are told that we must adapt to a new normal. This has many of us depressed and overwhelmed. If our future is not secured and satisfied by God, we are going to be excessively anxious. I take comfort in the saying…We don’t know what tomorrow holds but we do know who holds tomorrow. God has a plan and it is a good one. By putting our trust in God, we can persevere and endure these very difficult times.

“Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding.” Proverbs 3:5 (NKJV)

In Scripture, hope means a strong and confident expectation. When feelings of despair overtake us, we must take comfort in the truth found in the living Word of God. It has everything we need to overcome our feelings of anxiety. We discover Bible characters who struggle with fear, sin, and disobedience but by God’s grace they find forgiveness, strength, and help. We read about a loving and compassionate Savior. Miracles are recorded, proving that nothing is too hard or impossible for God to remedy. Promises, wisdom, power, and instruction are all within the pages of the Bible. There is no reason to worry yet… ask yourself this. When disappointments come are you running to the gospel or are you listening to the lies of the enemy?

“I wait for the Lord, my whole being waits, and in His Word I put my hope.” Psalm 130:5 (NKJV)

It takes action, effort, and an earnest decision to reach for your Bibles. It is far easier to fall down in despair and let wild imaginings overtake your thoughts. God promises a peace that transcends all understanding but only if you participate and labor to claim them.

“Why, my soul, are you downcast? Why so disturbed within me? Put your hope in God, for I will yet praise Him, my Savior and my God.” Psalm 42:11 (NKJV)

“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 (NKJV)

Some of us may be doubting the goodness of God. We see the chaos in the world and ask, where are the blessings? Wrestling and questioning God is something Jacob did. In fact, he had to live with a disabled hip because he challenged and struggled with the Creator. He was afraid his brother would kill him, so he asked God to bless and grant assurance he’d survive. By grace, God complied.

The life of Job is not about fear. Instead, he suffered great loss and thus fell into great despair. Although his wife encouraged him to curse God and die (Job 2:9), he would not! Although Job questioned why God had allowed such calamity, he still maintained his hope and believed God was righteous.

“But he said to her, ‘You speak as one of the foolish women speaks. Shall we indeed accept good from God, and shall we not accept adversity?’ In all this Job did not sin with his lips.” Job 2:10 (NKJV)

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, I encourage you to lay down your burdens and rest in the goodness of Christ. May the hope of eternal life be the promise you cling to and may peace engulf you during these uncertain and turbulent times.

“But those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; They will run and not grow weary; they will walk and not be faint.”
Isaiah 40:31 (NKJV)