War looms in the Middle East. The U.S. economy is in turmoil. Executives have misused corporate funds. Unemployment is rising by the hour. Prime-time television increasingly blasphemes God, flaunts immorality, and reveals more and more flesh. Personal health is on the decrease, with diseases on the increase. Marriages and families are coming unraveled. And the church of Jesus Christ doesn’t appear to be making even a modest dent on modern culture.
Everywhere we turn, the news seems pretty bleak. So, how can we have hope as we enter a new year? Let me offer the following 10 reasons:
1. God is our ultimate provider and not the government or a specific employer.
“And my God will meet all your needs according to his glorious riches in Christ Jesus” (Phil. 4:19).
2. Jesus promises to be with us wherever we go.
“And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age" (Mt. 28:20).
3. The Holy Spirit living in us is the same Spirit that raised Jesus Christ from the dead.
“And if the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead is living in you, he who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit, who lives in you” (Rom. 8:11).
4. The body of Christ is available to support us in the journey of life.
“And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds. Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another-and all the more as you see the Day approaching” (Hebr. 10:24-25).
5. God is able to turn the hearts of those in authority to align with His will.
“The king's heart is in the hand of the LORD; He directs it like a watercourse wherever He pleases” (Prov. 21:1).
6. The Bible is the Word of God and can be trusted at all times.
“All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work” (2 Tim. 3:16-17).
7. God has already supplied us with everything we need to live a godly life.
“His divine power has given us everything we need for life and godliness through our knowledge of Him who called us by his own glory and goodness” (2 Pe. 1:3).
8. Barak Obama is our President, but Jesus Christ is still the King of kings and Lord of lords.
“On his robe and on his thigh he has this name written: KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS” (Rev. 19:16).
9. God is willing to help us regardless of the need.
“God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble” (Ps. 46:1).
Everywhere we turn, the news seems pretty bleak. So, how can we have hope as we enter a new year? Let me offer the following 10 reasons:
1. God is our ultimate provider and not the government or a specific employer.
“And my God will meet all your needs according to his glorious riches in Christ Jesus” (Phil. 4:19).
2. Jesus promises to be with us wherever we go.
“And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age" (Mt. 28:20).
3. The Holy Spirit living in us is the same Spirit that raised Jesus Christ from the dead.
“And if the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead is living in you, he who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit, who lives in you” (Rom. 8:11).
4. The body of Christ is available to support us in the journey of life.
“And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds. Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another-and all the more as you see the Day approaching” (Hebr. 10:24-25).
5. God is able to turn the hearts of those in authority to align with His will.
“The king's heart is in the hand of the LORD; He directs it like a watercourse wherever He pleases” (Prov. 21:1).
6. The Bible is the Word of God and can be trusted at all times.
“All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work” (2 Tim. 3:16-17).
7. God has already supplied us with everything we need to live a godly life.
“His divine power has given us everything we need for life and godliness through our knowledge of Him who called us by his own glory and goodness” (2 Pe. 1:3).
8. Barak Obama is our President, but Jesus Christ is still the King of kings and Lord of lords.
“On his robe and on his thigh he has this name written: KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS” (Rev. 19:16).
9. God is willing to help us regardless of the need.
“God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble” (Ps. 46:1).
10. We can make an eternal difference in the lives of others as we reach out in Jesus' Name.
"Stand firm. Let nothing move you. Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, knowing that your labor in the Lord is not in vain" (1 Cor. 15:58).
11. An eternal home in heaven awaits all who follow Jesus to the end.
"Do not let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God; trust also in me. In my Father's house are many rooms; if it were not so, I would have told you. I am going there to prepare a place for you” (Jn. 14:1-2).
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