I’ve been doing student ministry for a long time. Most nights at youth group are fun, good for hanging out and great for some biblical encouragement. Some nights, though, the Holy Spirit moves in a powerful way and all I can do is praise God.
We had one of those nights earlier this week.
We were talking about God’s promise that if we place our hope in him we will see his goodness in our lives. Lamentations 3:22-25 says:
Because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed,
for his compassions never fail.
They are new every morning;
great is your faithfulness.
I say to myself, “The Lord is my portion;
therefore I will wait for him.”
The Lord is good to those whose hope is in him,
to the one who seeks him.
God’s word proved its power once again as so many students heard the message of God’s unconditional love and his unstoppable hope. It was my prayer that his love and hope would be revealed to them in a powerful way and, for some, it was.
God’s promise of hope and goodness mean so much to us today. Just by watching the news or reading the headlines at CNN.com, we can see so many reasons to lose hope and give into despair.
The shooting in Washington D.C.
The crisis in Syria.
The flooding in Colorado.
If we just looked at the world around us and its brokenness then we would have little reason to hope. If we just looked at our own lives and the difficult seasons we all face then we would have little reason to hope. But God promises that if we seek him then he will be good to us. If we place our hope in him then we will see his favor in our lives.
If all we do is look at the world, then we have no reason to hope. If we look at our loving God, though, then we have every reason to hope.
What helps you place your hope in God?
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