Life with God: Today, I hope…

What do you hope for? In what do you put your hope, your trust, your life?

That’s different for everyone. For Christians, we say that Jesus is our hope. And that’s true. He paid the ultimate price, His life, to give us eternal life.

Day to day it’s easy to say that we don’t place our hope in anything else but God. But let’s be honest: when the challenges of life creep in, it can be easy to slide our trust and hope to whatever’s closer and, well, tangible.

Financial challenges today? We can catch ourselves trusting in our credit cards or extra hours at work.

Family troubles? Oprah or other self-help gurus seem to hold all the answers.

Health issues? It’s easy to retreat into ourselves instead of asking the Great Physician.

The list goes on and on. Before we know it, our hope can be in anything else but God.

Let’s take a moment for a breather. Listen to the words of Paul in 2 Thessalonians 2:16-17 (NIV) and release your problems to God:

May our Lord Jesus Christ himself and God our Father, who loved us and by his grace gave us eternal encouragement and good hope, encourage your hearts and strengthen you in every good deed and word.

Right now we can take stock. Where are the weeds of fear and lack of hope in God sneaking into our hearts? Let God pick up the weed eater. Ask Him to focus your hope in Him… for today, for always.