Romans 15:13: "May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit."

Good morning and welcome to a brand new day. It's Friday, August 7, 2026, and I do hope our time together finds you and yours doing well. Hope. As believers, that is the foundation of our time here on the planet. I may hope it rains today, but that kind of hope finds us wishing it to be so. Our hope in God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit is based on a sure trust and a foundation of certain expectation. I am not hoping to make it to heaven; I know that my hope is in Jesus the Christ who died in my place for me. Having placed my faith in Him and His finished work on the cross, I am assured that when I die I will go to heaven. Don't get me wrong. Each of us can be beaten and battered by the storms we face in this life. That's because we live in a fallen world and bad things happen to everyone, believers included. These storms come in the form of pain, anguish, failings, disappointments, and losses of all kinds. These challenge our faith, and at times we may wobble due to the weight we are carrying. Even in the midst of these tough times, even when the enemy of our soul whispers in our ear words of fear and discouragement, we find our hope, and it's not based on circumstances; it's based on our Savior and His provisions to us. Here's an excerpt from a song I remember from my own experiences in dealing with challenges as well as seeing others dealing with great times of difficulty and heartache: 

 

Bow the knee
Trust the heart of your Father
When the answer goes beyond what you can see
Bow the knee
Lift your eyes toward heaven
And believe the One who holds eternity
And when you don't understand
The purpose of His plan
In the presence of the King
Bow the knee

 

Song: Bow The Knee, written by Chris Machen and Mike Harland 

 

I cringe when I read the Book of Job. Sure, we know in the end how his faith is vindicated, and he is restored; however, scholars suggest his suffering was endured for as long as several months, up to two years. That, my friend, is hard to fathom. How could this be? Only God. Yeah. That's the answer. Only God. Job's suffering and even his crying out, trying to make sense of his catastrophic agony, it all was in God's plan, purpose, and in His timing. Only God. Those of us who have placed our faith in the Lord Jesus Christ have His promises confirmed in both the Old and New Testaments: Deuteronomy 31:8: "The Lord himself goes before you and will be with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged" and quoted again in Hebrews 13:5. That's what we have to lean on folks and I encourage us all to do that very thing today. "Lord, help me to do the same." Amen.