Scripture: Isaiah 40 v 28 - 31: "Hast thou not known? hast thou not heard, that the everlasting God, the LORD, the Creator of the ends of the earth, fainteth not, neither is weary? there is no searching of his understanding.
29 He giveth power to the faint; and to them that have no might he increaseth strength.30 Even the youths shall faint and be weary, and the young men shall utterly fall:
31 But they that wait upon the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint."
There is a sure answer, that brings hope to our hearts, that our Lord never grows weary of us. He left His royal throne in Heaven to become a man, a human, to experience life in the flesh for Himself. He can now empathize with us, and share with our Father, the pain, heartache, sorrow, hardships, and death we suffer, while He intercedes on our behalf.
Jesus knows when we are weary and sends strength to carry us through the rough times. Look at Paul in 2 Corinthians 12 v 9 - 10: "And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me.
10 Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in necessities, in persecutions, in distresses for Christ's sake: for when I am weak, then am I strong."
Paul took pleasure in what he suffered for Jesus' sake because at his weakest, Jesus added His strength, and the powerful anointing of His presence brought great faith, comfort and hope to him. The strength to move spiritual mountains.
We are witnessing the beginning of the end of the world. It affects us all in different ways. From the trembling hearts of British royalty, facing exposure from a disgruntled Prince, to worldwide rising prices on oil and gas, to melting glaciers, to the plight of those in abject poverty, the world is being rocked.
The new trend is to make us all into caring humanitarians funding hunger crises fronted by well known actors with appealing videos. This is necessary because government coffers are looking awfully empty all round the world. Social media is full of the needs that tug at our heartstrings. The problem is that our coffers are not exactly overflowing either.
What would Jesus do? He needs us to have hope, and to pray effectively for His help. We must put our faith into action and believe that He protects us. Like Paul who prayed for his infirmity to leave, Jesus said, My grace is enough, when you are weak My strength will carry you through.
Let us not fear and lose heart, rather let us be as Daniel facing the lions and surviving without a scratch, or as the 3 Jews who defied Nebuchadnezzar by refusing to worship his golden image, and were thrown into an overheated oven. That evil king saw four men loose in the flames and cried out, one is like the Son of God. Not a blister or even the smell of smoke on any of them. They hoped and had faith that their refusal to compromise with idolatry would bring God into their midst to fight for them. And it did.
Hope's blessings are around us every day. Our Father has not lost the recipe for Manna if things get out of hand. He makes a way of escape, as He did for those three Jews in the fiery furnace. And their faith changed that prideful king into a believer in the one, true God.
When Jesus shows us plainly who is in charge, at our weakest moment He shows up without notice and from the exact moment we need help till all concerns are settled, Jesus has us covered. Always obey His Word, pay your tithes, and He will back up His Word:
Malachi 3 v 10 - 11: "Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be meat in mine house, and prove me now herewith, saith the LORD of hosts, if I will not open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it.
11 And I will rebuke the devourer for your sakes, and he shall not destroy the fruits of your ground; neither shall your vine cast her fruit before the time in the field, saith the LORD of hosts."
The Devourer, Satan, attacks in different ways when we are disobedient to God and His Word. He takes advantage of our misbehaviour because it brings upon us the dreaded brass ceiling, when we know that God is not hearing our prayers. To avoid the Devourer, gobbling up our hard earned wages, or stealing our peace of mind, health, or relationships, we need to ask God for forgiveness, put right that in which we have offended Him, and restore hope.
The promises of God in the Bible are true. They are our inheritance and hope of salvation. Jesus went the extra million miles to save the unworthy and ungrateful humans who were lost and dead in sin. What more would He not do to protect us, comfort us, heal us and deliver us from evil?
We are like children wandering and crying in the darkness of uncertainty. When we call on Jesus our blessed hope, He becomes the light that leads us to safety. We must keep our eyes upon Him because He guides us with His eyes. Psalms 32 v 8: "I will instruct thee and teach thee in the way which thou shalt go: I will guide thee with mine eye."
Prayer: Heavenly Father, hope is the cornerstone of faith and You are He in whom we have the greatest hope of eternal life. Let all the blessings that hope fulfilled can bring, be upon those who love You, and obey Your Word. Let the blessed hope of Jesus in our hearts be realised in our midst. We thank You Father, Son and Holy Spirit for meeting our needs. In Jesus' name. Amen.