My Journey Toward Thankfulness

It has been an interesting year. I will spare the gory details, but the honest truth is that I have had to work a whole lot harder at finding reasons to be thankful throughout this year. It's been much easier to give in to my fleshly attitudes of sarcasm, cynicism, and selfishness given our present trials. However, there are many blessings for which to be thankful, even when being tried by fire.

I have a God who loves me as I am, but obviously too much to leave me here. He is answering prayers of the past by "doing whatever it takes" to "make me more like Christ" … "even if it hurts." Despite my frail and faltering faith, He won't give up on me. He gives me chance after chance to respond to Him with the faith and trust that He is waiting to see in me. Thank you, God.

I have a loving, Godly husband who keeps me grounded and challenges me spiritually (he even makes me laugh from time to time!) and despite the true wretch that I am, he sees someone worth loving in me. Thank you, Matt.

I have a job working for/with people who love the Lord - a true blessing in today's world. Thank you, David, Miranda, and Stepping Stone staff.

I have the opportunity to further my education by studying counseling and integrating my passion for al things childbirth-related with what I am studying. In the process of studying things that I love, I am challenged to grow as an individual in every realm: physical, spiritual, emotional, etc. Thank you, HST - staff, professors, and colleagues.

I have family and friends who are real. They are the kind who stick with us even when life is at its messiest. They love us with their words and with their actions. They allow God to use them to bless us. Thank You, You Know Who You Are.

I have a precious kitty-cat. She is an incredible little creature who plays with me when I need a laugh and loves on me when I have had a rough day. She is truly therapeutic. She knows when something is wrong and expresses her concern by her actions towards me. She lets me know that she cares and that her love and care for me is unconditional! And when all else fails, she just sits there and looks cute and improves my day by just being there with me. (This part may be a little over-the-top for non-cat people … but I know my cat-loving friends will totally relate!) Thank you, Galilee.

The truth is, even when times are tough, there are really too many blessings to count. I could go on and talk about everything from role models, to physical health, to easy access to technology, to modern conveniences for which we should all be thankful. Yes, these are challenging times. But the Lord provides in infinite ways. His provision might not always come in the form I was hoping for, but when He sends manna, who am I to demand something more? He is my God, and I am not His god. And for that, I am eternally thankful!

I hope you have a Happy Thanksgiving. Because in both good times and bad, we live lives of luxury and abundance. It is only our selfish demands for "more" that blind us to this truth. Count your blessings, you probably have more than you realized. And at the end of the day, I think sometimes it takes living a more simplified life for our eyes to be opened to the blessings that truly surround us. We live in times where anything we want or need is available to us in the blink of an eye. And most of us have the financial resources to make any of it happen. This "blessing" may truly be a curse in disguise. Materialism casts its spell on many of us (did you notice I said "us"?) and has the potential to turn wonderful, God-fearing people into ungrateful monsters. So in this season of thankfulness, consider being more generous. With Christmas on the horizon, we are entering one of the most selfish, materialistic seasons of the year (yes, I just said that). Consider giving away more than you buy and counting your blessings even when Thanksgiving is over. It truly is more blessed to give than to receive, and I bet it makes God smile a whole lot more!

I Surrender … Some?

The last thing I should be doing is recreational writing (I have a research paper due soon!), but when the urge hits, sometimes you just have to surrender. Speaking of surrender … that is something I've been having a lot of trouble with lately. In fact, it's the very thing I felt compelled to write about.

We humans can be pretty stubborn. And selfish. And ungrateful. I'm talking about myself, here. I've always heard people make comments like, "I have been trying to take control in my life … I need to give it to God … I need to trust Him and let Him be in control." Maybe I was in denial, but I always thought that was a weird comment. I never really had trouble letting God take the stage in my own life. At least not until my innocent, naive ways were taken over by my adult, sinful self.

The thing is, life hasn't been a bed of roses lately. In fact, it's been a lot more like taking a bath in manure on a nasty, hot, humid day. (And I don't know anyone - except maybe my dad ;) - that thinks their manure smells like a bed of roses.) And in my stubbornness, I've tried to be the God of God. Maybe not intentionally, but when it comes down to it, that's the truth of what I've been doing. Things haven't been going so great. And instead of surrendering (there's that word again!), I've tried to take control of the entire thing. I've been SO stubborn that I haven't even had the decency and humility to pray! I have continuously expected God to just do exactly what I want Him to do. And when He doesn't, I became angrier and angrier with Him. And the more angry I become, the more cynical and ungrateful my spirit becomes. As though He wasn't the King of the universe. As though my baptism was a claim that I was the Lord of me and He wasn't. As though He doesn't know far more what is best for me than I do. Hmmm. My way is sounding less and less great now. And when I really think about it, my pure ignorance is pretty embarrassing.

Sometimes living in the flesh can be pretty rough. I mean, as baptized believers, we do have the Holy Spirit as our Helper. But sometimes I really feel like there are two me's inside of me.  It's like the fleshly me is holding the spiritual me hostage. There's just something about that fleshly part inside that does NOT want to let go. No matter how much the Lord relentlessly pursues me  through His word and His people, that fleshly part just wants to hang on with all her might. As though letting go would mean death. But then … maybe it would? Letting go would, indeed, mean putting more of my sinful self to death. But that's good, right? Yet that stinking flesh holds on with so much vigor. The spiritual battle is real. I know who wins the war, but I have to improvise here in this battle. It's pretty easy for anyone to surrender some. But we are called to surrender all.

I think the longer we live, the more difficult surrender can become for us. It's like there is so much in this fleshly world to hold on to that it becomes immensely difficult to truly let go. It reminds me of the rich man who asked Jesus, "Lord, I've kept every commandment. What now?" And Jesus told him, "Go and sell all of your possessions and follow me." Although this present circumstance may or may not have to do with riches, the principle holds true for all. There is that part inside of us that just wants to hold on. And as long as that part holds on, we have not truly surrendered. As Christians, we've already said we will follow Him. But the real question then becomes, how far? How devoted will we be? What are we willing to lose for Him? Will we give it all up? Will we let Him take us over? Will we give Him our whole selves? Our whole bodies? Or will there always be two me's living inside of us?

Sometimes I wish I could just talk to Jesus in a live, physical, in-this-moment conversation. All of this spiritual stuff just seems so intangible most of the time, and something I could touch and see would be great, don't you think? But then I am reminded of His conversations with His apostles. When He was telling them that His departure was near, He promised that He would send a Comforter and Helper that would be even greater than having Him there physically: the Holy Spirit. And we have that same Spirit with us. The same power that raised Christ on the third day is the same power to which we have access. When we fully surrender all to Him, we, too, can be resurrected … with more of our fleshly selves put to death. With each death to self comes a resurrection in which we are raised look more like Him. It doesn't happen over night. It is a process that happens over a lifetime, called sanctification.

Redemption comes for those who have surrendered and died. We can't expect resurrection to happen without certain death to self.

Will you surrender all? Will I surrender all?

Are You a Transitional Person?

A self-fulfilling prophecy is a commonly known phenomenon where what is expected to happen ends up being what happens. In other words, a strong belief about a person (though it may actually be false) will influence/alter that person's actions so that the prediction comes true.

An easy to understand example: a teenager's parents are overly controlling of him because they are convinced that if he goes out, he will drink. Realistically, the teen has never had any interest in drinking. He just wants to enjoy a night bowling with some buddies. But every time he wants to go out, his parents talk about how they don't want him to drink. They vocalize the expectation that this is what he will do if they give him too much freedom. As a result, he eventually ends up in trouble with alcohol. It could be speculated that his parents created a self-fulfilling prophecy that altered his actions.

We can think of numerous examples of these self-fulfilling prophecies. We have all seen them. But I want to draw attention to a form they take that I was not previously aware of. My attention was drawn to this during one of my graduate classes.

"If your parent was an alcoholic, you will probably grow up to be an alcoholic."

"If your parents are divorced, you will probably get a divorce."

"If your parents abused drugs, you will probably abuse drugs."

How often have you heard these kinds of statements? The meanings of these statements have been misunderstood by a large part of the population. So often, these statements have been interpreted to mean that the majority of the children from dysfunctional families grow up to have dysfunctional families of their own. This could not be further from the truth! 

The statements would be more accurately stated like this:

"Children of alcoholics have a greater likelihood of becoming alcoholic."

"Children with divorces parents have a greater likelihood of becoming divorced."

"Children whose parents abused drugs have a greater likelihood of abusing drugs."

Indeed, coming from a dysfunctional family creates the possibility of children who will continue that dysfunctional cycle. There is a greater likelihood. However, the majority of children from dysfunctional homes do not do what their parents did. 

In light of this information, I began to ponder: how many children who actually end up perpetuating their parents' dysfunction do so only because people expected them to? In other words, the misunderstanding of the above information creates a self-fulfilling prophecy that alters the actions and outcomes of the children. They somehow think that this was they life that they were meant to live and they really have little choice in the matter. 

But there is another concept I want to introduce to the discussion, and that is the concept of a transitional person. A transitional person is a person who breaks a dysfunctional cycle within a family and creates a new, healthy legacy for their family and future generations.

The point is, people who come from dysfunctional backgrounds do not have to live a life of dysfunction. 

Now, I want to intertwine the concept of a transitional person with what we understand to be a Christian.

Christ offers His grace and salvation to everyone. From every background. Even the most dysfunctional ones. And within that gift of salvation, he also imparts the gift of the indwelling Holy Spirit, through whom Christians receive the transformative power to become sanctified and holy. To stand apart. To break away from dysfunction and live a life that emulates Christ's. 

No matter what background you come from or how messed up it is/was, you have a choice. And that choice is yours. It's yours alone. You cannot blame anyone for the choice you make. It is your choice and your life. But you have an option. Through Christ, you can become a transitional person. In other words, you can become a Christian. And the best part about it is, part of becoming a Christian means that you can teach others how to achieve the same thing.

This is what God calls us to be. A Christian stands out from the world as a transitional person who breaks the dysfunctional patterns of the world and call others to a higher standard of living: a life of self-denial.

"...I came that they may have life and have it abundantly." - Jesus (John 10:10)

Even to the Point of ... Death?

Sometimes, life stinks. In your zeal and loyalty to God, you make the decision to be bold and stay committed to Him, no matter where that takes you. The popular belief is that your zeal, commitment, and faithfulness will take you down a path full of blessings – easy and comfortable. But the truth is, sometimes God calls us to follow Him – even to the point of death. In other words, we remain true to Him, no matter the consequence. Those consequences are often good. Following God and choosing His righteousness is, without a doubt, going to result in the best possible life a Christian can have in this fallen world. But more often than we care to admit, remaining faithful to God and living righteously results in negative consequences. Otherwise, why would John have written his words in Revelation: “…be faithful unto death …”? Sometimes being faithful to God means that, in this physical world, we lose. Maybe it means you lose your friends. Or it could mean you lose your fancy car. Maybe it means you lose your much too luxurious home or a portion of the clothes that, let’s be honest, you have too much of. It might mean you lose a portion of your savings because lost souls are a little bit more important than your own financial security. Or maybe God will require you to lose your job. Or, and this one is radical, what if following Him literally means losing your life? The fact is, following Christ to the cross doesn’t mean you will have every physical gain. It often means that you will lose something in the here in now. That’s why in his letter to the Philippians, Paul said “For me, to live is Christ, and to die is gain.”

Accepting this truth and committing to follow Him no matter the loss is not easy for anyone. After all, in America we have become accustomed to enjoying our big fancy church buildings, hip fun church trips, trendy “Christian” messages, all while climbing the social ladder and enjoying our American dream. We are not accustomed to losing much of anything for the sake of Christ.

When you realize that His higher calling means you must lose something, you have two choices. You can commit to follow Him all the way or you can make the easier decision of following Him “except for fill in the blank.” (And in case you’re wondering, the latter choice means you’re actually not following Him. And if you’re not following Him, it’s not hard to guess who you are following.)

For those who commit to the higher calling, let me warn you. It won’t be easy. You see, you will commit to following Him no matter what. And when the rubber meets the road, with the Spirit’s help, you will boldly stand for Him. And when it results in losing, no matter what that may mean in your life, you will feel like you are on top of the world. You know that you lost something significant to you. But you know that God required it of you. And that knowledge will sustain you for a while. But in the time that follows, guess who is going to come knocking at your door? You guessed it. The Deceiver himself. He isn’t too crazy about this radical decision you’ve just made. And it bothers him even more that you feel good about it. So he is going to make your life a living Hell for the next few days.

In those days, you’ll hear his voice. It will sounds something like this:

“Isn’t this humiliating?”

“It wasn’t really worth it, was it?”

“Are you sure God really delivered you?”

“You’re just being self-righteous. Trying to make yourself a hero.”

“You did that for God. But where is He now?”

“God doesn’t really care what you did or lost on His behalf.”

“Are you sure He’s really there, anyway? Where is He now?”

“If God is really there, what kind of God is He? You lose all of this for Him and He doesn’t even deliver?”

The consequences of what you have lost and the significance of those losses will begin to play out and you will start to need God’s deliverance more than ever before. You’ll probably begin to feel pretty lonely. It will seem like God is so distant and Satan’s lies will begin to make a lot of sense in your head. You’ll feel yourself becoming angry with God. And Psalm 88 will become your battle cry:

“God, you’re my last chance of the day. I spend the night on my knees before you. Put me on your salvation agenda; take notes on the trouble I’m in.
I’ve had my fill of trouble; I’m camped on the edge of hell. I’m written off as a lost cause, one more statistic, a hopeless case. Abandoned as already dead, one more body in a stack of corpses, And not so much as a gravestone—I’m a black hole in oblivion. You’ve dropped me into a bottomless pit, sunk me in a pitch-black abyss. I’m battered senseless by your rage,
relentlessly pounded by your waves of anger.
You turned my friends against me,
made me horrible to them.
I’m caught in a maze and can’t find my way out,
blinded by tears of pain and frustration. I call to you, God; all day I call. I wring my hands, I plead for help. Are the dead a live audience for your miracles? Do ghosts ever join the choirs that praise you? Does your love make any difference in a graveyard? Is your faithful presence noticed in the corridors of hell? Are your marvelous wonders ever seen in the dark, your righteous ways noticed in the Land of No Memory? I’m standing my ground, God, shouting for help, at my prayers every morning, on my knees each daybreak.
Why, God, do you turn a deaf ear?
Why do you make yourself scarce?
For as long as I remember I’ve been hurting; I’ve taken the worst you can hand out, and I’ve had it.
Your wildfire anger has blazed through my life; I’m bleeding, black-and-blue.
You’ve attacked me fiercely from every side,
raining down blows till I’m nearly dead.
You made lover and neighbor alike dump me; the only friend I have left is Darkness.”

Psalm 88 (The Message)

Somehow, God expects us to blindly follow Him, no matter the loss. And what happens after that in the here in now might be good or it might be bad. But He has promised that when we follow Him even to death, the result in eternity is far better than anything we can possibly imagine. And no matter where things go in the here and now, we have to hold on to that one single promise. Because without the hope contained in that promise, it is impossible to go on following Him with such blind, bull-in-a-china-shop faith. 

The Marks of a True Christian: Fruit and Love

 

In recent months, God has impressed on my heart the importance of bearing fruit and loving one another. There are a number of things that people like to use as “identifiers” for Christians. For some, it’s a t-shirt or a bumper sticker. For others, it’s whether or not a person is at church every time the door is open. For still others, questions regarding just how much and what the person understood at the time of their salvation are considered to be the most crucial. However, Scripture is clear in telling us how to know a Christian when we see one. 

The first way we read about is the bearing of fruit. The Bible talks about the fruit that different people bear numerous times.

The most obvious time is in Galatians when Paul writes about the fruits of the spirit: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. These character traits are those of Christ. Christians have the Holy Spirit dwelling within them and as they submit to God’s will, He manifests these character traits in their lives.

Peter, one of Jesus' disciples, taught that a person receives the gift of the Holy Spirit when he or she becomes a Christian. Upon being asked what to do when the people were pricked to the heart due to their lost state, Peter replied: "Each of you must repent of your sins and turn to God, and be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. Then you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. This promise is to you, and to your children, and even to the Gentiles--all who have been called by the Lord our God" (Acts 2:38-39). True Christians will embody the fruits of the Spirit. Without the gift of the Holy Spirit, the good fruit of the Spirit cannot be produced in a person's life.

In order for a person to receive the gift of the Holy Spirit, he or she must become a Christian. Moreover, in order for a person bto ear good fruit, he or she must have the gift of the Holy Spirit and be actively submitting to Him. However, it must be understood just because a person is a baptized Christian who at one time received the gift of the Holy Spirit, this does not necessarily imply that all such individuals are bearing good fruit. Unfortunately, it is sometimes the case that baptized Christians do not submit to the will of God by bearing their crosses. In these cases, the Spirit is quenched--prevented from producing fruit in the life of such an individual. As a result, many people who call themselves Christians, instead of producing the good fruit of the Spirit, produce bad fruit. Those who find themselves in this category must be challenged to question whether or not they are, indeed, faithful Christians.
 

Luke 6:43-45 further confirms that Christians and non-Christians are recognized by their fruit: “A good tree can’t produce bad fruit, and a bad tree can’t produce good fruit. A tree is identified by its fruit. Figs are never gathered from thornbushes, and grapes are not picked from bramble bushes. A good person produces good things from the treasury of a good heart, and an evil person produces evil things from the treasury of an evil heart. What you say flows from what is in your heart.”

 In context, Matthew 7 is discussing how to recognize a false prophet. However, I think it is safe to say that the message conveyed can be broadened to describe non-Christians as well: “You can identify them by their fruit, that is, the way they act. Can you pick grapes from thornbushes, or figs from thistles? A good tree produces good fruit, and a bad tree produces bad fruit. So every tree that does not produce good fruit is chopped down and thrown into the fire. Yes, just as you can identify a tree by its fruit, so you can identify people by their actions.”

A second way Scripture teaches we can identify Christians is by their love for each other. A multitude of Scriptures indicate how important love is in the life of a Christian. The clearest passage in this context is John 13:34-35: “So now I am giving you a new commandment: Love each other. Just as I have loved you, you should love each other. Your love for one another will prove to the world that you are my disciples." 

God has used my environment to shed light on these concepts for me. Christianity really works, and when people live out Biblical concepts, it is evident to all who are around. And those who are not living out these concepts are bearing fruit that God warns against. True Christians have changed lives. Just because people are at church every time the door is open does not mean they are true Christians. Their daily lives must resemble the fruits of the Spirit. Their actions must exemplify Christ. Non-Christians are not bearing good fruit. Instead, their lives are marked by selfishness and a lack of concern for or interested in others. They are marked by the tendency to complain and put others down. They are busy trying to find satisfaction in material wealth and other dead-ends.

The unpopular truth is this: churches are full of non-Christians. That is, churches are full of people who are deceived into thinking that by committing 1-4 hours of their week to God by going to church, they are in the clear. Yet they live their lives the way they want to, often in total defiance to God’s way. Churches are full of people who claim to be Christians who have never even touched their cross, much less picked it up or bore it. Churches are full of people who simply do not follow Christ. They don’t bear fruit and their interactions with others are a far cry from exemplifying the love of Christ.

The dilemma created by this unpopular truth is that it is often difficult for true Christians and Christ-seekers to actually figure out who the true Christians are. They are lost among thousands of people who are deceived into thinking they are Christians. So how do you identify a true Christian? You examine their life to see if they are bearing good fruit (the fruit of the Spirit) and to see if they are proving their loyalty to Christ by loving one another earnestly and zealously.

Do you claim to be a Christian? If so, are these two qualities evident in your life? If not, make a change or stop claiming to be a Christian. Because the fact is, when you don’t live up to that claim by letting Christ be manifested in you, you repel the lost. The challenge for Christians is to strive to attain these qualities more in every single day, every single moment, and with every single decision.

May we all be known by the good fruits we bear and the love we have for one another.

From Gethsemane to Calvary

Gethsemane is often thought of as a place of anguish and pain. It is most famously known as the place where Christ sweat drops of blood as he prayed to his Father and spent the final moments of His physical lifetime preparing to bear our crosses and take on the sins of you and me.

While Gethsemane is famously known as a place of Christ’s anguish and pain, it is often overlooked that Christ went there to pray regularly. The New Testament shows that Christ frequented Gethsemane numerous times. It is a fair assumption that Gethsemane was not so much a place of anguish and pain as it was a place of comfort for Him. Gethsemane was probably among His favorite places to pray, possibly even His most favorite place.

Christ’s comfort zone was Gethsemane. This was the place where he felt secure and safe, evidenced by the things contained in His final prayer there. He let go of all inhibition, allowing Himself to feel such anguish that He sweat drops of blood. Not only this, but it was in Gethsemane that Christ prayed, “Father, if you are willing, please take this cup from me. Yet I want your will to be done, not mine” (Luke 22:42 NLT). Gethsemane was where Jesus felt comfortable, safe, and secure. However, Jesus knew that He would not be able to remain in Gethsemane all of the time. He knew He had to leave His comfort zone to fulfill His purpose. Eventually, leaving Gethsemane to fulfill His purpose meant that He had to go to Calvary. Calvary was His real place of anguish and pain, not Gethsemane. At Calvary, I wonder if Christ only wished He could be back in Gethsemane, safe and secure, resting in His Father’s arms, instead of hanging on a cross where His Father had to turn His back on Him. Christ had faith that doing His Father's will was the right thing. And as a result of going to Calvary, He was resurrected.

Christians tend to get stuck in comfort zones. We all have our own Gethsemane’s. We all feel comfortable in our own bubbles, in our own places, and around our own friends. Having a Gethsemane is a great thing. Christ had His. And we should have a Gethsemane too. We need a place where we can lose all inhibition and go to our Father in prayer, knowing we can say and ask anything that is on our heart. But we can’t expect to remain in Gethsemane. We, like Christ, have been called to fulfill a greater purpose.

How do you leave your gethsemane and go to your calvary? The answer is self-denial. We, like Christ, have to go to Calvary. For Christ, that meant a physical death on the cross. For us, that means that we have to die to our old selves daily by leaving our comfort zones and fulfilling God’s purpose for us. When you really want to do something, but shouldn't, you deny yourself. You go to calvary. When you really don't want to do something, but you should, you deny yourself. You go to calvary. It could be a particular sin, or it could be something that isn't sinful in and of itself, but can be turned into sin due to lack of self-control or an attempt to fulfill a need in an illegitimate way. One thing is for sure: every single day, Christians are confronted with a multitude of opportunities to make the choice to deny self in some way, small or large, and live for Christ. The right choice is easy to discern, but hard to make without the help of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit dwells in Christians and He provides all of the power that raised Christ from the dead in all of us. Just as God resurrected Christ after Calvary, we can trust Him to resurrect us when we go to calvary by denying ourselves daily. As a result of living for Him in self-denial, He will resurrect more of Christ in each of us as we become more like Christ by living for Him instead of for ourselves.

 There are a lot of things we don’t do (but should) because they make us uncomfortable or we do (but shouldn’t) because they make us comfortable. But the calvary’s we face daily are nothing compared to the Calvary Christ had to face in the end. What is your excuse? When will you follow in Christ's footsteps and go from Gethsemane to Calvary?

Hope

Hope (intransitive verb) - 1. to cherish a desire with anticipation. 2. trust. (transitive verb) 1. to desire with expectation of obtainment. 2. to expect with confidence (See Merriam-Webster: http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/hope).

When you think about hope, what do you think about? Hope is one of those abstract concepts that can sometimes be hard to wrap your head around. If you're like me, you are used to hearing the word "hope" used in a selfish context. Phrases like, "I hope I get that iPad for Christmas," "I hope that guy calls me back," "I hope that teacher gives me an 'A'," and the like are how we usually hear the word used. This use of the word matches the definition above, "to cherish a desire with anticipation." It is a use of hope that is associated mostly with strong desire and wishful thinking. While that use of the word hope is by no means wrong, I think our society has in many ways all but forgotten a more important type of hope.

In the Bible we read about hope that is defined differently. There are numerous passages that mention hope. In fact, the word is used roughly 72 times in the New Testament. While several of those occurrences are used like the definition mentioned previously, many times it is used differently.

You have probably heard people talk about how Christians have the hope of salvation and the hope of heaven. It is crucial that we not confuse definitions when we talk about hope in these contexts. To say that Christians have a hope of salvation does not mean that Christians desperately want to be saved and are hoping God decides to save them. Salvation is not wishful thinking for Christians. Instead, this type of hope is full of expectation and knowledge. Christians know that they have been born again and are washed in the blood of Christ on a continual basis. They fully expect that God will fulfill his promise of salvation both in the present and in the future. The same is true when the Bible talks about Christians having the hope of heaven. Hope of heaven is not something as shallow as wishful thinking. On the contrary, Christians have full knowledge that they will be in heaven and hope is the expectation of heaven that they live with on a day-to-day basis.

Having hope as Christians is an amazing thing. Knowing fully that we are saved people on our way to heaven is knowledge that can do great things for us.Our hope and expectation that Christ will, indeed, return is a comfort to us as we face many trials in this world that is not our home.

When you think about your hope of salvation, are you unsure? Do you think in terms of  "I hope I go to heaven when I die"? Christians have no reason to think this way. We are given plenty of assurance when it comes to our salvation. God did not intend for His children to feel as though they are walking on eggshells all of the time. We need to stop wondering if we are really saved and focus our energy on more important things. He made a promise and it is time that we trust Him. None of us is saved based on our own merit. None of us will make it to heaven without relying on Him and trusting in God's grace fully and completely. Ultimately, we either have faith or we don't. I suggest that Christians stop trying to work their way to heaven. Instead, we need to live like Christians, trust God, and accomplish His will.

We have every reason to expect God to fulfill his promise of salvation and to live in hope of that expectation every single day.

My prayer for you is the same as Paul's when he wrote to the Ephesians: "For this reason, because I have heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love toward all the saints, I do not cease to give thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers, that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and of revelation in the knowledge of Him, having the eyes of your heart enlightened, that you may know what is the hope to which He has called you, what are the riches of His glorious inheritance to the saints, and what is the immeasurable greatness of His power toward us who believe, according to the working of His great might that He worked in Christ when He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly places, far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and above every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the one to come. And He put all things under His feet and gave Him as head over all things to the church, which is His body, the fullness of Him who fills all in all." (Eph 1:15-23)