Do you need hope in the midst of the mess and chaos in the world?
When we look at crisis after crisis, it is natural to feel despair.
On a large scale, the terrorist attacks, hurricanes, and pandemic stirs fear within us as we wonder about the impact of each one.
On a personal scale, we wonder about job security, relationship stress, or continued health issues. Those issues can cause us to tremble at the thought of drastic change or loss.
Where can we find hope?
By looking to the Word of God we learn from people who faced their shifting world with the hope of God.
Recall God’s faithfulness to find hope.
In Lamentations 3:21-23, Jeremiah changes his focus from the dismal situation of the fall of Jerusalem to hope in
God’s unchanging character. He made the choice to call to mind the reason for hope.
Yet this I call to mind and therefore I have hope:
Because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail.
They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.
Pray with hope.
Daniel remained strong in his faith in the midst of a wicked culture. He prayed, believing God.
Ann Graham Lotz shares about the prayer Daniel prayed in Daniel 9:1-19.
Sometimes we don’t know how to pray. However, when we pray about heavy situations, God hears us.
The Intercessors for America website offers prayer points to guide us in praying for the world situation.
Romans 12:12 NIV encourages us to pray with hope.
Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer.
Remember God’s sovereignty to restore hope.
Many times leaders in the Bible remembered God’s sovereignty in prayer. We can add our voices as well.
In 2 Chronicles 20:6 (NIV) we read this prayer:
Lord, the God of our ancestors, are you not the God who is in heaven? You rule over all the kingdoms of the nations. Power and might are in your hand, and no one can withstand you.
A. W. Tozer, who lived from 1897- 1963, looked to God and remembered his sovereignty. Today we can find comfort and hope in this quote as we remember God’s perspective over all.
The Lord restores our hope when we recall his faithfulness and remember God’s sovereignty.
Let’s pray:
Heavenly Father,
Sovereign Lord of All,
We come to you with heavy hearts for the mess of the world. We don’t know what to pray, but we seek you.
We remember your faithfulness and sovereignty, especially when things seem out of control.
Thank you for that we can have peace and hope when we look to you in prayer. Amen.
