Thank you for staying with me throughout this Advent series on HOPE. This time, we will find yet another result of our hope in Christ.
I mentioned a friend of mine who is recovering from COVID. She hasn’t had energy to do any holiday shopping. Like others who have contracted this awful virus, she is still dealing with the residual effects of COVID. She tried walking to our mailboxes recently and could barely make it back to her apartment. Her legs felt like jelly. That one brief trip exhausted her.
One of the special results of hope is renewed strength. In Isaiah 40:31, the prophet writes, “Those who hope in the Lord will find new strength. They will soar high on wings like eagles. They will run and not grow weary. They will walk and not faint.”
The Apostle Paul knew what it was like to be exhausted. He had been shipwrecked, beaten, whipped, stoned. Yet in 2 Cor. 4:16-18, he encouraged his readers with these words: “That is why we never give up. Though our bodies are dying, our spirits are being renewed every day. For our present troubles are small and won’t last very long . . . So we don’t look at the troubles we can see now; rather, we fix our gaze on things that cannot be seen. For the things we see now will soon be gone, but the things we cannot see will last forever.”
Are you exhausted from exploring the malls or searching the internet for just the right Christmas gift for that hard-to-shop-for person on your list? Take a moment to pray and ask God to renew not merely your body but also your spirit. (And it is okay to ask Him for help in finding that perfect gift idea!)
