“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. Because of his great mercy, he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead and into an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you.” 1 Peter 1:3-4
Recently, I came across a news headline that read: “Hope isn’t a strategy.” The assumption is that hope yields no tangible results. It is argued that having a good plan backed by real world data will get us out of this Covid-19 crisis. I do not doubt the effectiveness of this model in responding to the crisis. However, without hope, the best plan falls on deaf ears. When someone has lost a loved one or a stable job due to Covid-19, they need to believe that something better is coming. They need hope.
As a Christian, my greatest hope is in the resurrection of Jesus Christ. I know that no matter how bad things get, I have an inheritance to look forward to. Terror and death are temporary. In the same way that Jesus overcame death, I will also overcome death. This knowledge gives me hope that my current predicament does not dictate my future. Hope is the fuel that keeps me going, even when things seem impossible.
I know that many of us are going through hard times. Our lives have been disrupted by Covid-19. God’s Word reminds us that all suffering is temporary (Rev. 21:4). We continue to live and fight the despair around us because we have hope. We know that God will give us the victory.
Heavenly Father, thank you for giving us hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ. Give us strength to endure through these troubled times. May we shine your light as a beacon of hope to those suffering around us. Amen.