Church 4 Chicks!: Hope During Times of Prolonged Suffering Part 1

Hope During Times of Prolonged Suffering

I am particularly burdened for a sweet friend whose life changed dramatically after a stroke. Three years later she’s living with great losses that stem from that one incident. Her heart longs for the one thing her faith is sure of – the hope of heaven.

Hope During Times of Prolonged Suffering

I am particularly burdened for a sweet friend whose life changed dramatically after a stroke. Three years later she’s living with great losses that stem from that one incident. Her heart longs for the one thing her faith is sure of – the hope of heaven.

Do you have a similar burden?

Is someone in your life in need of a NOW hope? Is it you?

Oh how I want her to hope for something In the more foreseeable future – something much sooner than heaven. I want to reach into her future grab something for her to hang her hope on, and bring it back for her to stare at everyday. Where is Michael J. Fox and that fancy back to the future car when we need it?

My heart scans the truths from biblical history and beyond.

How did Job survive the physical suffering as well as his many losses? How did Paul rejoice in prison and after beatings? How did Corrie Ten Boom survive solitary confinement, concentration camps, and the torture of captivity?

Faith.

Corrie Ten Boom explained,

“There are circumstances where you cannot do anything. It was only the Lord who has carried me through, and it’s good that I have experienced that. For I have always believed, now I know from experience, that Jesus’ light is stronger than the deepest darkness. And a child of God cannot go so deep; always deeper are the Everlasting Arms that carry you.”

Hope

Our hope is in God. He has promised a beautiful, sorrow-free life in heaven but He has not promised when. For some, life can be so hard for so long that it’s hard to not wish it were now. How does a Christ-follower keep hoping for a better tomorrow when the much needed and prayed for miracle has been a no-show for years?

In the must-have devotional, Today is Your Best Day, Roy Lessin teaches,

· Today is your best day because you are here. God has placed you in this moment of time for a purpose, and the things that happen to you today will be an unfolding of that purpose.

· What happened to you yesterday, however easy or difficult, was used by God to help prepare you for what He has for you today.

· God will use what happens today to prepare you for what He has for you in future days.

· God used your past and worked it all together for the good, and He will use this day to add to the good that He has already worked on your behalf.

Do you believe the above statements are true for you?

Do you believe they are true for the one who is suffering and is very aware this suffering is a hardship on others?

Re-read them. Put your name in the sentence: “Today is my best day because …”. Now, read it with the name of your suffering friend(s).

Prayer Prompt:

Let’s ask God, the Source of all miracles and Sustainer of the suffering, to grant us His perspective on this really difficult subject of suffering and hope.

We will continue exploring this subject in the next post. Until then, we can keep listening for God’s revelation. I’m eager to hear what you learn on this from Him.

Jennifer O. White is an author, speaker and encourager to those seeking a life of hope, peace and confidence. You are invited to join her on a brave life, marriage, and world-changing adventure with Jesus at her blog: Prayerfully Speaking, and her free ebook: Prayers Spoken, Lives Changed: God’s Extraordinary Love in 18 Ordinary Lives. Check out her upcoming book for new brides here.

Do you have a similar burden?

Is someone in your life in need of a NOW hope? Is it you?

Oh how I want her to hope for something In the more foreseeable future – something much sooner than heaven. I want to reach into her future grab something for her to hang her hope on, and bring it back for her to stare at everyday. Where is Michael J. Fox and that fancy back to the future car when we need it?

My heart scans the truths from biblical history and beyond.

How did Job survive the physical suffering as well as his many losses? How did Paul rejoice in prison and after beatings? How did Corrie Ten Boom survive solitary confinement, concentration camps, and the torture of captivity?

Faith.

Corrie Ten Boom explained,

Hope

Our hope is in God. He has promised a beautiful, sorrow-free life in heaven but He has not promised when. For some, life can be so hard for so long that it’s hard to not wish it were now. How does a Christ-follower keep hoping for a better tomorrow when the much needed and prayed for miracle has been a no-show for years?

In the must-have devotional, Today is Your Best Day, Roy Lessin teaches,

· Today is your best day because you are here. God has placed you in this moment of time for a purpose, and the things that happen to you today will be an unfolding of that purpose.

· What happened to you yesterday, however easy or difficult, was used by God to help prepare you for what He has for you today.

· God will use what happens today to prepare you for what He has for you in future days.

· God used your past and worked it all together for the good, and He will use this day to add to the good that He has already worked on your behalf.

Do you believe the above statements are true for you?

Do you believe they are true for the one who is suffering and is very aware this suffering is a hardship on others?

Re-read them. Put your name in the sentence: “Today is my best day because …”. Now, read it with the name of your suffering friend(s).

Prayer Prompt:

Let’s ask God, the Source of all miracles and Sustainer of the suffering, to grant us His perspective on this really difficult subject of suffering and hope.

We will continue exploring this subject in the next post. Until then, we can keep listening for God’s revelation. I’m eager to hear what you learn on this from Him.

Updated Bio:

Wednesday, January 22, 2014

Hope During Times of Prolonged Suffering Part 1 - by Jennifer O. White

Hope During Times of Prolonged Suffering

I am particularly burdened for a sweet friend whose life changed dramatically after a stroke. Three years later she’s living with great losses that stem from that one incident. Her heart longs for the one thing her faith is sure of – the hope of heaven.

Hope During Times of Prolonged Suffering

I am particularly burdened for a sweet friend whose life changed dramatically after a stroke. Three years later she’s living with great losses that stem from that one incident. Her heart longs for the one thing her faith is sure of – the hope of heaven.

Do you have a similar burden?

Is someone in your life in need of a NOW hope? Is it you?

My heart scans the truths from biblical history and beyond.

How did Job survive the physical suffering as well as his many losses? How did Paul rejoice in prison and after beatings? How did Corrie Ten Boom survive solitary confinement, concentration camps, and the torture of captivity?

Hope

In the must-have devotional, Today is Your Best Day, Roy Lessin teaches,

· Today is your best day because you are here. God has placed you in this moment of time for a purpose, and the things that happen to you today will be an unfolding of that purpose.

· What happened to you yesterday, however easy or difficult, was used by God to help prepare you for what He has for you today.

· God will use what happens today to prepare you for what He has for you in future days.

· God used your past and worked it all together for the good, and He will use this day to add to the good that He has already worked on your behalf.

Do you believe the above statements are true for you?

Do you believe they are true for the one who is suffering and is very aware this suffering is a hardship on others?

Re-read them. Put your name in the sentence: “Today is my best day because …”. Now, read it with the name of your suffering friend(s).

Prayer Prompt:

Let’s ask God, the Source of all miracles and Sustainer of the suffering, to grant us His perspective on this really difficult subject of suffering and hope.

We will continue exploring this subject in the next post. Until then, we can keep listening for God’s revelation. I’m eager to hear what you learn on this from Him.

Do you have a similar burden?

Is someone in your life in need of a NOW hope? Is it you?

My heart scans the truths from biblical history and beyond.

How did Job survive the physical suffering as well as his many losses? How did Paul rejoice in prison and after beatings? How did Corrie Ten Boom survive solitary confinement, concentration camps, and the torture of captivity?

Hope

In the must-have devotional, Today is Your Best Day, Roy Lessin teaches,

· Today is your best day because you are here. God has placed you in this moment of time for a purpose, and the things that happen to you today will be an unfolding of that purpose.

· What happened to you yesterday, however easy or difficult, was used by God to help prepare you for what He has for you today.

· God will use what happens today to prepare you for what He has for you in future days.

· God used your past and worked it all together for the good, and He will use this day to add to the good that He has already worked on your behalf.

Do you believe the above statements are true for you?

Do you believe they are true for the one who is suffering and is very aware this suffering is a hardship on others?

Re-read them. Put your name in the sentence: “Today is my best day because …”. Now, read it with the name of your suffering friend(s).

Prayer Prompt:

Let’s ask God, the Source of all miracles and Sustainer of the suffering, to grant us His perspective on this really difficult subject of suffering and hope.

We will continue exploring this subject in the next post. Until then, we can keep listening for God’s revelation. I’m eager to hear what you learn on this from Him.

No comments:

Post a Comment