Faith, Hope and Love - Part 1 - Faith

Most humans rely on finite, physical senses and limited mental powers in analyzing all truth. If it does not feel right, then we reject it. Satan is right there making sure that the things of God make no human sense.

The unjust live by sight and not by faith. They mock faith and scorn those of us living by it. They see no sense in our infinite trust in God's provision and care for us.

That is why faith is stressed so often in Biblical passages. Those who trust in God live by faith and not by sight (Habakkuk 2:4; Romans 1:17; Galatians 3:11; Hebrews 10:38). We face life's issues with courage and all the other fruit of His Spirit (Galatians 5:22-23).

Faith is a lovely realm in which to live our life. It is ethereal and supernatural, peaceful and full of God's grace. It places us under the shadow of God's wings - the safest place in the universe.

If we live by faith, we float in God's rest through the chaos of every storm. He keeps us safe and walks in us through everything we experience, calming our heart and giving us His peace that transcends the emotion and heartache of our trials.

Prayer:
Father God, pride and rebellion have always run rampant on the earth, and self-reliance is the mantra of each successive generation. I ache for those who reject Your goodness and love, and instead, embrace Satan's lies and trickery. I pray that Your Spirit will draw all men to You as we lift You up in our lives.

Help them to see our good works and our faith in Your faithfulness and to embrace your free gift of salvation through the sacrifice Jesus made on our behalf. We are eternally grateful to You for Your loving kindness to our parents, children, grandchildren, extended family members, friends, neighbors and associates.

Thought for the Day:  

Out of God's glorious riches, He strengthens us in our inner being with His power through His Spirit; and Christ dwells in our hearts through our faith in Him as we are rooted and grounded and established in His love. - Ephesians 3:16-17

Faith, Hope and Love - Part 2 - Hope

Life hurts - there is no doubt about that. It knocks us for a loop, and we fall flat on our humiliated face, or into a deep well of despair. If all we have is human dependence, we are truly miserable.

Our only recourse is to muster our inner strength and to pull our self up yet again with our waning human resources. Each time this occurs, we get weaker and more despondent. Many people eventually run out of steam (Luke 21:26-28).

Our only and best hope in this life and the next is to trust in God's love through the saving grace of Jesus' death on Calvary's cross. He is all we need (Colossians 3:3-4).

When we focus on Christ instead of our circumstance, He stands with us and in us in the midst of our trials. With Christ in us we shall never, ever be shaken from His solid Rock of sufficiency as our everlasting hope (Psalm 16:8, 62:6, 112:6).

His love is better than life and our lips praise Him for His goodness, love and provision of all of our needs for every moment of our life (Psalm 63). His peace and joy embrace us through every negative aspect of life.

Jesus walks with us through the valley of the shadow of death (Psalm 23), comforting us with His direction and divine presence in our life. The peace He gives transcends anything this world has to offer and replaces all of our fears (Philippians 4:7).

His eternal hope shrouds our despair and we can do anything He calls us to do through His strength within us (1 Corinthians 4:13; Ephesians 3:16). He sustains us each moment of our day with victory in Jesus.

Prayer:

Father God, we hope only in You and thank You for Your divine presence in Christ in us (Galatians 2:20). We eventually lose our way without You to keep us safely tucked beneath the shelter of Your wings. We cry out to You and You hear us and deliver us from all of our troubles (Psalm 34:17).

We hunger after Your holiness and desire to walk only in Your ways (Matthew 5:6). We trust in no one other than You. You are continually with us and fight for us (Mark 4:37-40). You joy over us with singing, delight in the day we leave this world and join You in Heaven, and You bring us Your joy and provision as we walk in Your Spirit each moment of the day.

Thought for the Day:

The God of Hope will fill us with His joy and peace as we trust in, hope in and believe only in Him; we constantly overflow with His hope by the power of His Holy Spirit. - Romans 15:13