'hope' Tagged Posts (Page 9)
Daily Devotions
For in hope we were saved. Now hope that is seen is not hope. For who hopes for what is seen?” vs. 24 Romans 8:22-25 We regularly hear people of faith speak of the future with great confidence. It appears that they have no doubt that one day love will conquer and that evil will be defeated. They speak of peace on earth with great conviction, as though it’s going to be happening in just a few more years. And…
Daily Devotions
Posterity will serve him; future generations will be told about the Lord, and proclaim his deliverance to a people yet unborn, saying that he has done it.” vss. 30-31 Psalm 22:25-31 Twenty-five hundred years ago the psalmist declared to his congregation that future generations would be told about the Lord and hear the good news of their deliverance. And he was right! The good news of our gracious and merciful God continues to be heard all around the globe in…
Daily Devotions
But this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, says the Lord: I will put my law within them, and I will write it on their hearts; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people.” vs. 33 Jeremiah 31:31-34 For hundreds of years Israel had prided itself on being a covenant people. God had chosen them out of all nations and had promised to be their God forever.…
Daily Devotions
No distrust made him waver concerning the promise of God, but he grew strong in his faith as he gave glory to God, being fully convinced that God was able to do what he had promised.” vss. 20-21 Romans 4:17-25 Paul’s extravagant description of Abraham’s faith stretches our credulity a bit, but there’s no doubt that he believed Abraham was the founder of the Judeo-Christian faith community. From his perspective salvation history began with the faith of Abraham and continued…
Daily Devotions
For he did not despise or abhor the affliction of the afflicted; he did not hide his face from me, but heard when I cried to him.” vs. 24 Psalm 22:23-26 We’ve heard the voices of the afflicted big time during this last year. Every country in the world has been affected, and millions of families have suffered pain and loss. Jobs have disappeared and the education system has been stressed to the max. Some have even echoed the psalmist…
Daily Devotions
Have mercy on me, O God, according to your steadfast love; according to your abundant mercy blot out my transgressions.” vs. 1 Psalm 51:1-17 Through the years we’ve come up with some creative ways to deal with the problem of sin in our lives. Most recently a sizable number of folks have decided that there’s been too much talk of sin in the church, and that we deserve a break. Some congregations have consequently eliminated the confession from the order…
Daily Devotions
Psalm 62:5-8 “For God alone my soul waits in silence, for my hope is from him. He alone is my rock and my salvation, my fortress; I shall not be shaken.” vss. 5-6 Psalm 62:5-8 We don’t know what was going on in the psalmist’s life–we can only imagine and then guess that his journey was not that different from ours. There are times when words fail us, those moments when the things we hold dear seem to be disintegrating.…
Daily Devotions
1 Samuel 3:1-10 “Now the boy Samuel was ministering to the Lord under Eli. The word of the Lord was rare in those days; visions were not widespread.” vs. 1 Corruption was rampant in the days of Eli. People were bringing sacrifices to Shiloh where an altar to the Lord had been set up but the priests, even Eli’s sons, were nothing but scoundrels. And in the midst of the chaos the word of the Lord came to a child,…
Daily Devotions
Jeremiah 31:10-14 “Then shall the young women rejoice in the dance, and the young men and the old shall be merry. I will turn their mourning into joy, I will comfort them, and give them gladness for sorrow.” vs. 13 The picture of hope that Jeremiah painted for the people of Israel included return to the land and an amazing celebration. Their mourning would be turned into joy, and their sorrow transformed into gladness. There would be dancing and merriment…
Daily Devotions
Jeremiah 31:7-14 “For thus says the Lord: Sing aloud with gladness for Jacob, and raise shouts for the chief of the nations; proclaim, give praise, and say, ‘Save, O Lord, your people, the remnant of Israel.’” vs. 7 Jeremiah is typically thought of as a prophet of doom, one who continually warns Judah and Jerusalem of the catastrophic consequences of their current behaviors. But in this portion of his sayings he has nothing but salvation on his mind. He believes…
Daily Devotions
Luke 2:22-40 “There was also a prophet, Anna–of a great age… She never left the temple but worshiped there with fasting and prayer…At that moment she came, and began to speak about the child.” vss. 36-38 When Mary and Jesus brought the baby Jesus to the temple for the rites of purification they were accosted by two elderly prophets, Simeon and Anna, both of whom were temple regulars. Now it’s not unusual for old people to hang around places of…
Daily Devotions
Luke 2:1-14 “And she gave birth to her firstborn son and wrapped him in bands of cloth, and laid him in a manger, because there was no place for them in the inn.” vs 7 Luke’s precious story detailing the birth of Jesus is at its core a tale of hope. When we look at our family stories it’s amazing how regularly the accounts of death are accompanied by the report of a birth. A beloved grandmother dies and a…