Hope for Tomorrow

 

If the Gospel of Christ is not true, then there is no forgiveness or reconciliation for our sins and we have no resurrection to look forward to. We have no joy for our current life or for the next, and there is no expectation of living in the Father's house in the future (Romans 10:9; I Corinthians 15:17-19; John 14:1-2, 12). Life without Christ is a life without hope.

There are countless people experiencing depression and mid-life insecurities because they place their hope in our culture, a bank account, a philosophy, their employment or worldly religions. This house of cards is shaky at best, and the ensuing insecurity drives people insane, gives them heart attacks or destroys their relationships.

However, the Gospel of Christ is gloriously true. Jesus suffered and died to set us free from Satan, the flesh, sin and death. We now have hope for tomorrow. As we walk in the light of God's Truth, we have no fear of darkness or evil, because Christ in the authentic Believer overcame Satan and evil on Calvary's cross. Even negative aspects of life now work out for our good (Romans 8:28).

A life based on God's Word has a stable and firm foundation (2 Timothy 2:19). As we walk by the direction and power of God's Spirit, we will not fulfill the dictates of the devil or the flesh, but we will luxuriate in the continual blessings of God (Galatians 5:15-26). As we focus on His plans for our life with a pure heart, He uses us according to His will (Psalm 51:10; Ephesians 2:10).

Prayer:

Father God, thank You for giving us the opportunity to live in Christ and to become a new creation. We rejoice that our old habits, sins, negative emotions and personality are made new by Your Spirit (2 Corinthians 5:17). When we trust You with our life, You destroy the deprivation, which devastated us and You mature us in the likeness of Your Son (Romans 8:29). Thank You for claiming us as Your own and for making it possible for us to spend eternity with You.

Thought for the Day:

Therefore, even when we are simply eating or drinking, or whatever we decide God wants us to do, we do it all for His glory.

- 1 Corinthians 10:31

Christ, Our Solid Rock

The power of prayer girding every circumstance in our life is laid on a foundation of the solid Rock of Christ and His sacrifice in our life. This solid bedrock supports us with both positive and negative experiences from our past. God used these incidents in our life to add to the emotional and mental framework of the house the Lord is building in our life.

Negative emotions are worm-riddled planks, which give our house an insecure structure. God replaces that rotting wood with His Truth about a situation. He may not use a Bible verse, but He will speak an impression in our spirit that is biblical and that we know is from Him. We renounce Satan's lies about this issue and renew our mind with God's Truth.

This frees us to forgive any person who harmed or wounded us in any way. The negative emotions, which plague us - especially people with a melancholy personality, are slowly replaced with thoughts that are factual, gracious, accurate, holy, divine, admirable and commendable. We focus on what we know is true about Christ in us, and His life in other Christians.

Then the peace of God will fill every corner of the new house, which God is building with our life (Philippians 4:7-9; 2 Corinthians 5:17). These new planks, these strong and solid Truths, add to our firm foundation of prayer and God's presence in our life. Focusing on the Truths of God's Word calms our fears, builds up our confidence in Christ within us (Colossians 1:27, 3:1-4; Galatians 2:20), and releases His power in our thoughts, words and deeds.

Prayer:

Father God, with our eyes focused solely on You and Your Word, we realize that regardless of the battles we experience in our world, You already overcame them all through the blood of Christ. You are working out everything, even negative circumstances, for our ultimate good (Romans 8:28). Help us to rely on You, rather than in worldly wisdom and strength, to fight our battles. For You are our mighty stronghold (Psalm 18:2). Remind us that Jesus is our firm foundation and nothing and no one can shake us out of Your hand (Romans 8:35-39). Regardless of the negative activity around us, we remain peaceful and calm within, with trust and hope in You alone (Psalm 62:5; Isaiah 26:3).

Thought for the Day:

Do not be afraid or discouraged by the negative activity and thoughts in your life, no matter how overwhelming they are; because there is greater power in us through Christ, who helps us to fight our battles, than the power of the flesh, the world or the devil combined. - 2 Chronicles 32:7-8

For help with a wounded past go to:

( www.theophostic.com )

The Journey through Depression

Read: Psalm 56:8-9

“Then they cried to the Lord in their trouble, and he saved them from their distress. He brought them out of darkness and the deepest gloom and broke away their chains.”

– Psalm 107:13-14

The journey through depression is often slow and frustrating. We may not even be aware of what is causing this darkness in our life. Negative conditions and emotions are signals that there are issues in our soul – our mind, will and emotions - that need correcting. It may be our attitude, unholy activities, unforgiveness toward our self or someone else, carnal goals and aspirations, filling our hectic life with too many activities or some deep hurt that is still unknowingly festering within. Journaling is an excellent way to stay in touch with our soul. If we know what we are thinking and feeling, we can more readily word our prayers and ask others for help.

God also brings His Saints to our rescue. The Bible encourages us to share one another’s burdens (Galatians 6:2). However, first we must be honest enough to admit to our self that we are troubled and humble enough to confess our true feelings and circumstances to another human being (James 4:10; Proverbs 29:23). Even the most detailed of plans can fail without God’s wisdom and a multitude of counseling from those who already walked this way before us (Proverbs 15:22). Therapists can help as well, because they are trained to understand the human mind and they can help us to unlock hidden doors within our soul.

In the pit of gloom, we have obstacles to overcome, but we lack energy or direction. However, even in times of depression, God will speak to us, if we will seek Him and listen for His voice (Isaiah 45:3). The Lord is good to those who wait for Him (Lamentations 3:25). His unfailing love rests upon us as we wait on Him (Psalm 33:22). By drawing near to God, He draws near to us. As we surrender our life to Him, walk away from our sin and allow Him to purify our heart, .He enables us to identify and resist Satan’s lies until clarity comes to our mind (James 4:7-8).

As we wait upon the Lord, our heart takes courage and our hope rises (Psalm 27:14, 39:7; 40:1). However, waiting is the hardest discipline for humanity today. We eat instant food. We have instantaneous access to the world through the Internet on our phone in the palm of our hand. We immediately access cash with an ATM machine. We get instant answers to all of our questions via Wikipedia, Google, and the like. We have direct help in a few moments of time for any technological issue we experience.

We are not used to waiting. We get frustrated waiting in long lines, and at red traffic lights, and in the doctor’s waiting room, and for the restaurant waitress to bring our food and for people to show up on time for an appointment with us, etc. Waiting takes patience in the face of our suffering (James 5:10). However, God uses times of waiting in our life to heal us from our losses, to renew our strength, and to prepare us for the next trial, so we can mount up with wings and soar with the eagles (Isaiah 40:31).

God is waiting too. He desires a people who will look to Him and wait on Him for His intervention. God will always hear us when we cry out to Him (Micah 7:7). Jesus, our high priest, experienced every trial and temptation that we do in our life, and He can sympathize with and relate to what we are going through at any given moment in our life (Hebrews 4:15-16). He empowers us, even when we are tired, weak and worn out. He does His perfect work in us as we wait on Him (Isaiah 40:29; Job 5:11; Philippians 1:6).

Prayer:

Father God, we thank You for Jesus as our Rock, our firm foundation in this stormy world in which we live. We look to You to put a new song in our heart, so that we can praise You in the midst of our negative circumstances (Psalm 40:3). Remind us that You work out all things, even the depressing issues in our life, for our good (Romans 8:28). Use our weaknesses to show other people that it is Your joy that upholds us and gives us our strength (Psalm 40:1-3). Thank you for Your strength as our sword and shield. Our heart trusts in You and leaps for joy, because You are our help in times of trouble (Psalm 28:7).

Thought for the Day:

God keeps track of our sorrows in His journal and stores every one of our tears in His bottle. - Psalm 56:8