My husband and I recently caught up with an old friend that Greg grew up with. While they enjoyed spending time together and reminiscing about the past, I noticed that he often compared his life to ours. He had had several hardships in his life, and it had not turned out the way he would have planned. I could see he had lost hope of having a better future for himself. I didn’t have the opportunity to speak hope into his heart, but I want to share what I would have said with you in case you or someone you know needs the encouragement.
Our lives consist of the series of choices that we make. Some of our choices align with God’s will while other choices align with the will of our flesh. Each choice either draws us closer to God or can lead us further away from His presence.
However, sometimes it’s our circumstances rather than our choices that steal our hope. All too often we become overwhelmed when bad things happen, we don’t see a way the situation can be fixed, and we merely throw up our hands and yell ‘Enough!’ We begin to separate ourselves from God before we see how He intended to use the bad situation for our good. When we take our eyes off of Him and only see our own circumstances, our pit of despair grows deeper. Unfortunately, we get so blinded by the pit that we lose any hope for a life of promise.
But that’s not where the story ends! While it’s true that numerous choices can lead us away from God, fortunately God’s word shows us that we’re never too far away to come back to Him! God taught us through the parable of the prodigal son that even if we go our own way; the Father’s love is always available when we decide to come back to Him. We have never gone too far to be covered by God’s love! The promise of God’s love comes with the promise for a hope and a future. He will redeem and restore you…it’s a promise!
I pray that you’d be encouraged today no matter how near or far from Him you are!
Be blessed,
Jennifer
“But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion for him; he ran to his son, threw his arms around him and kissed him.” Luke 15:20