It's the thing that keeps us going during the dark night of the soul, the power that keeps us moving forward when we're ready to give up. It moved Job, who was tested and tried, to confidently write: "I know that my Redeemer lives." Even as he faced death, it led the apostle Paul to write: "Yet I am not ashamed, because I know whom I have believed, and am convinced that He is able to guard what I have entrusted to Him for that day." That's hope - pure and simple.
A favorite verse of my is Hebrews 6:19(a): We have this hope as an anchor for the soul, firm and secure.
Writing about this verse, Rev. Richard Lauersdorf has this: "Few things were more important to the sailor in a storm than a good anchor and a good ground for it. Believers in Christ have both. They have an 'anchor for the soul, firm and secure.' Like some anchors whose strong flukes cannot be twisted out of shape, so we have in Christ an absolute strong and reliable hope."
In Christ Jesu we have a safe harbor. The storms of life, while threatening to us, cannot destroy us. We flee to Christ. Anchored in the solid ground of His Holy Word, we can stand firm against the temptations of the devil. Satan cannot steal our soul. Christ comeback victory on the third day ensures us of new life now and eternal life in heaven. As Jane Fryer writes, "Flee for refuge to Him! Take hold of the life He offers you! Live in great courage! You are His now and forever!"
