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Monday, September 28, 2015

My Hope




“You are my refuge and my shield; your word is my source of hope” (Psalm 119:114, NLT).

“Lord, when the struggles of this life overwhelm you are my sanctuary. When I'm not strong enough to stand, you are the strength that carries me. When I feel vulnerable to the onslaught of those who come against me, you are the shield that protects. You are your Word; you and your Word are my sources of hope in this world. When the world speaks defeat, you speak victory. When the world speaks death, you speak life. When the world turns its back, you are constant and unchanging. When the world accepts the latest belief, your Word is solid and pure. It inspires all the hope I need to reach for you. I can't place hope in a word that changes because then my hope would have no meaning. But your Word is rock-solid and unchanging. What it promises it promises. I can believe in what you impart through your abiding Word. I can believe in your faithfulness above all the world's fickleness. Your Word is truth above all else.”

“In the beginning the Word already existed. The Word was with God, and the Word was God. He existed in the beginning with God” (John 1:1-2, NLT). The Word existed in the very beginning of this world! Not only did it exist, it was the very heart and being of the Creator. The New Living Translation speaks of the Word as “he”. The Word was God in the beginning. The Word is God now. If I want to know God, I will know His Word. If I want to know His hope, I will make His Word my most intimate resource.

“Not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us” (Roman 5:3-4, NIV). How do I glory (rejoice) in that which is my refuge and shield? I rejoice when I grow in perseverance and character and hope. I rejoice when God's Word inspires me to discover His promise for my life. Hope does not disappoint–it does not discourage–it does not shame when it is placed in God's Word. His love has been poured into my heart through the gift of the Holy Spirit, and that love anchors me to believe in that which a volatile world cannot believe.

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