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With each New Year we are given an opportunity to ‘start over’ as it were. We are faced with new possibilities and a chance to do better. We will have many challenges and difficulties in 2019, both at church and in our personal lives.
What will give us the endurance to push forward in spite of challenges is ‘Hope’. How we deal with what happens to us determines, to a large degree, whether we survive, thrive or give up. Hope is something that cannot be taught, but it can be caught – from those who are hopeful. We may look at the world around us, at our circumstances, even at our church and we wonder where God is. As a result we may face changes or challenges that threaten to snatch away our hope and faith. For some a sense of hopelessness may steal their joy, while for others it may be stress, worry or anxiety.
And so, as we stand on the threshold of a new year, let me assure you that God is exactly where He has always been – close to His people. In Jeremiah 29:11 God says to Israel (and to us) that He has plans for them: Plans to prosper them and to give them a future filled with hope. God speaks to us today in a similar fashion – offering us His plans for our lives, and a future filled with hope and joy. This joy is not dependent on our circumstances being just right, or whether people like us or not, but on His everlasting love and care for us.
We may not be sure what will happen in 2019, but we can be certain that nothing can separate us from the love of Christ – His love and care, promises and plans will exceed anything that life can throw at us.
Have a joy-filled 2019 because our heavenly Father cares, and gives us hope as a precious gift.
God bless.
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