2020 has been surreal! There has been a multitude of natural disasters on the planet. The COVID-19 outbreak literally shut the world down, infecting millions, and resulting in thousands of deaths. In the midst of these crises, video technology provided a front row seat to view the murders of unarmed men, Ahmaud Arbery, George Floyd, and Rayshard Brooks by police. Breonna Taylor, a black woman was also killed by policemen in the middle of the night in her apartment. Subsequent protests against racism, bigotry, and hate against black people broke out in America and spread to many other nations. To add to our list of woes, this is a presidential election year and bipartisan shenanigans have accelerated!
As a result of these catastrophes, social distancing and mental health are the new buzz words. Masks and gloves are the hot wardrobe accessories while toilet paper and hand sanitizers were in short supply. You may have felt down in the dumps, in despair, depressed, desperate, or weak—spirit, soul, or body. Perhaps you are merely going through the motions while your emotions have been up and down like an out-of-control elevator. Maybe your family has suffered various losses—death, job, income, house, faith, etc. Some are even questioning the whereabouts of God right now.
I have some good news for you. We are going to get through this unprecedented period. God wants you to know that He’s still God, is sovereign, large and in charge, in control, and you can still trust Him. In 1 Corinthians 13, known as the love chapter, Apostle Paul ends with verse 13, “and now these three remain: faith, hope, and love. But the greatest of these is love.” When the smoke clears, we have God’s guarantee of this trio of blessings.
Faith gives substance to our hopes and assures us of the realities we will experience. Our faith is not in people but in God’s Word. God has made us precious promises and each believer has been given mustard-seed faith. Like Jacob, let’s exercise bull-dog faith (read Genesis 32:22-32)!
Hope is a confident expectation based on solid certainty. It is not wishful thinking. Because we have put our faith in God and His Word, we can believe the promises of God. Hope is an extension of our faith.
Love is not a feeling but it is an action word. (Read 1Corinthians 13:4-8 NLT to learn what love is and what it is not). In John 3:16 Jesus gives the bedrock scripture for Christianity, “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him, should not perish, but have everlasting life.” Who did God love? He loved every person who has been born into this world. What did God give them? God gave His Son, Jesus, to die on the cross for mankind’s sin. When we accept Jesus as our Saviour, He saves us, God becomes our Father, and the Holy Spirit deposits the God-kind of love in our hearts. Love is one of the hallmarks of a Christian!
Let’s remember faith is in the present as we walk by faith and not by sight!
Let’s remember hope is in the future as we put our hope in God and expect what He promised!
Let’s remember love is eternal and Christians do not have the capacity to hate but to love the world just like Jesus!
Let’s remember that God is not a man, He does not lie, and is the original promise keeper!
God Is Ministries, LLC 