Today’s Reflection
Hope is the lifeline tossed out to us from God. It sustains us when we feel like we are drowning, and God gently pulls us and the lifeline toward the shores of spiritual growth. With hope, we also have faith—not faith that we will be spared pain and despair but faith in the God who will lead us through the difficult times. Therefore, in our struggle to understand God’s will, let us not concentrate solely on our pain and despair (although we know we are to accept them); instead, let us look with hope and faith toward attaining new, rich experiences of the abundant life God has given us.
—John R. Wimmer, Blessed Endurance: Moving Beyond Despair to Hope (Upper Room Books, 2018)
Today’s Question
What helps you grow in hope and faith? Join the conversation.
Today’s Scripture
May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that you may abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.
—Romans 15:13 (NRSV)
Prayer for the Week
Healing God, when we feel alone, hurt, or misunderstood, assure us of your presence and companionship as you guide us toward a more abundant life. Amen. Submit your prayer to The Upper Room.
Something More
“Hymns embed faith into the marrow of the soul,” Rev. Dr. James C. Howell writes in Unrevealed Until Its Season: A Lenten Journey with Hymns. Howell believes in the power of song to teach spiritual truths. His newest book takes us on a 40-day journey through well-loved hymns. Learn more here.
Lectionary Readings
(Courtesy of Vanderbilt Divinity Library)
Looking for lectionary-based resources? Learn more about The Upper Room Disciplines.
2 Comments
Keep reading and studying the Bible, worship, coming to NEM, and prayer all keep me going Made it through the “blizzard “. Sunny, going to 18, but winds make it feel like -11. Got about 8 inches of snow. Glad worship is via ZOOM. Hope everyone has power. Thank You, Lord for this day and every day.
I love this reading and it goes hand in hand with today’s sermon. Our faith and our hope need to be what sustains us during hardships. Our trust in Him can give us peace and inner steadiness and joy because the He will use our stretching and uncomfortable scenarios to grow us – to continue the sanctification process. Yes, Lord, have Thine own way.
Glad you are safe Robert, in the midst of that storm. The videos on tv are pretty incredible.
We are bracing for another large snowfall Wednesday evening into Thursday. Right now the forecast is for at least a foot. Hard to believe. We still have so much on the ground now, although it will be above freezing tomorrow and Tuesday.
Testing Roger today, and the numbers have been high. I am not surprised as his water intake has increased the past two weeks. Have two more readings to take. He isn’t happy about it, but thankfully he loves me just the same once it is over.
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