Inspired by hope

‘We continually remember before our God and Father your work produced by faith, your labour prompted by love, and your endurance inspired by hope in our Lord Jesus Christ.’ 1 Thessalonians 1.3

At the beginning of his letter to the Thessalonians, Paul laid out what it was about his friends that really impressed him, and the words he used say a lot about them. One of the phrases that stands out is, ‘endurance inspired by hope’. Paul seems to be praising the Thessalonians’ ability to carry on in the knowledge that their present situation was not all it should have been.

At times we may have a tendency to accept too readily the things that befall us, whereas if we brought hope to these situations we would begin to see them through God’s eyes. His joy in creation was looking at it and seeing that ‘it was good’. Jesus’ mission was that we might ‘have life and have it to the full’ (John 10.10).  Hope is when we begin to catch this vision for our lives and, holding it in front of us, have the inspiration to endure our present circumstances in the knowledge that there is more.

If you are going through a hard time, hold on to this vision that Jesus came to give you abundant life, and allow it to give you hope.

John has recorded a meditation based on seeing things from God’s eyes and keeping hope alive – if you have ten minutes here is the link.

www.healingmission.org

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