Week 17 - April 21-27, 2024: Hang On to Hope

This week’s daily readings:

April 21-27, 2024

This week’s devotional:

Hang On to Hope

by Erica Bethke

Scripture:

Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade. This inheritance is kept in heaven for you, …

— 1 Peter 1:3-4 (NIV) 

Reflection:

What do you put your hope in? Family ties, citizenship in a powerful nation, position in the community, and money set aside for the future are common answers. Living through the COVID-19 pandemic, I, like many others with some money invested in the stock market, watched my portfolio plummet and rise and then drop sharply again with each new news story about how outbreaks and lockdowns were affecting various industries and economic sectors. As our climate continues to change, violent storms and wildfires threaten even the dream of home ownership as a safe investment for the future. What had once brought people a sense of peace about the future was now a source of stress and worry. 

Even in our own families we experience job loss, the loss of once close relationships, and the loss of life through accidents and illness. There is certainly a temptation to either lose hope completely or to simply distract ourselves from the seemingly crumbling world around us. 

Thousands of years ago, Christians living in one of the most powerful empires in the ancient world were also perhaps feeling as though the world around them was crumbling. Persecution from the Roman empire threatened the security and hope for the future that being a citizen of Rome had once provided. The apostle Peter wrote to encourage our ancient brothers and sisters in Christ, but his words still speak powerfully today: “In his great mercy [Christ] has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, and into an inheritance that can NEVER perish, spoil or fade.” Our hope is not in the life here and now, but the one yet to come! 

What does this mean to you in light of the reality that we are called to take part in God’s work here and now? 

Prayer: 

Lord, we admit to being people who do not like to wait and even less to feel as though we are living in limbo or uncertainty. Please help us in our waiting and remind our hearts anew each morning of your promises. Surround us with good people that point us back to you when we begin to lose our hope and strengthen us so that we might also encourage others with your promises in times of waiting and uncertainty. We thank you, Lord, that no matter what happens, our inheritance with you in heaven is safe and secure. Amen.