“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His abundant mercy has begotten us again to a living hope …”

— 1 Peter 1:3

What’s your outlook on the future? Do you view the future with hope for great things or with despair?

Two thousand years ago, Cicero said, “Where there is life, there is hope.” These words ring true to a certain extent. When we struggle against all sorts of odds, even if we face imminent death, as long as we have life, we have hope. However, for many people, the following statement seems more relevant: Where there is not hope, there is not life—nothing but darkness, despair, and death.

When we lose hope, we lose all of our joy. Just imagine facing any one of many difficult trials—betrayal, loss of a job, death of a loved one—without having any hope. Without hope, we have no foundation to stand on when the going gets rough. We also lose the meaning of life when hope slips away. When we have no hope, nothing has purpose. Under these conditions, the everyday struggles of life become burdens too heavy to bear and too difficult to endure.

But we need not lose hope. Because of Christ’s resurrection, we have great hope for our future. We don’t just hope for something that is to come; we find our hope in something that has already taken place. The Resurrection, a documented fact in history, is a solid, unmovable rock, and everyone who hopes in it has great joy. Christ has vanquished death and Hell. We have the hope of going to Heaven to spend eternity with Him. And even in this life, Christ has promised never to forsake us.

Christ gives us hope. If you’re feeling a little low on hope today, ask Jesus to give you some. Remember that He has secured your future, and in that truth you can have great hope for today and every day.

“Everything that is done in the world is done by hope.”
Martin Luther