Hope For Today Videos

Some things that seem small can be used by God, in His wisdom and power, to do great and even seemingly impossible things. L

God wants us to pray. Let’s do it effectively.

For centuries people have looked for loopholes – a loophole is way we try to gain an advantage even though we avoid doing what is actually required.  We look for shortcuts, ways of going around requirements, of finding faster and more convenient ways to achieve what we want. When we try to compromise God’s word for whatever attitude or behaviour we want to hang onto we are looking for loopholes.

Many of us want to have healthy bodies and therefore are careful about what we eat and drink. Some of us exercise.  Some of us do better at these things than others. Jesus wasn’t against us having healthy bodies but He taught us that the way we behave with our bodies is only as good as what we fill our minds and hearts with.

It is so easy to find fault with what others are doing and to criticize them.  The truth is, it doesn't help to focus on anyone’s flaws and failures, and it distracts from the time and energy we give to God's transforming work in our own lives. While we may think that we are controlling and changing other people by criticizing them, it rarely has that effect. God has a better option for us today.

We often attach the label, “higher education” to those degrees people seek who go to college and university after high school graduation. But, when you think about it. every student around the world is working towards a higher education. Throughout life God calls us to do the same. 

One of the marks of character in a person is choosing to do the right thing when everyone else thinks they are getting it wrong.  The wisdom of their choice or action isn’t often seen for a while and it takes great courage to stick with what they know it’s right in that interim period.

We all want peace and lots of it and we are assured of it when we make a choice to love God’s instruction. So then the big question for us is, “What does it mean to love God’s instruction or as some translations put it, God’s laws?”

We are naturally bent towards living in self-will and we live in a sinful broken world.  We get stained and germed-up every day and need the cleansing and refreshing God makes available.  Just as we “clean as we go” in our homes each day, so God wants us to allow Him to clean us regularly as we go through our day.

As we consider being grateful today I thought we could focus on what it means to remain in a posture of gratitude a little longer than just a fleeting moment.

The story of God connecting with His people in public places like the tabernacle and the temple is told in chapter after chapter in the Old Testament part of the Bible.  So what does that have to do with us today? Amazingly, we are now meant to be those who demonstrate every day this connection between heaven and earth, this God who meets persons and persons who meet with God. 

What divides us? What happened to being curious together rather than suspecting anyone who sees an issue differently from us; or seeking to solve problems together rather than attacking each other; helping each other instead of competing with one another? Where has that sense of community, seeking the common good, and sticking together through hard times gone? What does Jesus have to say about it all?