The world news seems to be getting more horrific all the time. Suicide bombers, kidnappings, massacres, wars, murders, accidents. It all feels terrible, it’s easy to get discouraged. How can we go on like this, we ask. How can we continue to enjoy living when the world is full of tears and heartbreak?

But don’t we then forget this is not all there is?
Don’t we forget why Jesus came into the world?

The Spirit of the Sovereign Lord is on me,
    because the Lord has anointed me
    to proclaim good news to the poor.
He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted,
    to proclaim freedom for the captives
    and release from darkness for the prisoners,
to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor
    and the day of vengeance of our God,
to comfort all who mourn,
    and provide for those who grieve in Zion—
to bestow on them a crown of beauty
    instead of ashes,
the oil of joy
    instead of mourning,
and a garment of praise
    instead of a spirit of despair.
(Isaiah 61:1-3, CEB)

How can we go on?

Jesus came to bind up the brokenhearted and comfort all who mourn. He came to save us from our sins, from death and dying. Jesus came that our tears would dry and our hearts would rejoice in the Lord. He came so we could have life and more life.

Jesus is Immanuel in Hebrew which means “God is with us”. And this is exactly why we rejoice in the midst of sufferings. This is exactly why we dare to live boldly even when the world seems to be going crazy. God is with us every single day. He will never leave us or forsake us. Even if it feels that way.

Because of Jesus we have hope everlasting

You see, Jesus changed everything. Now we have hope that will not be taken from us. Sure, without Jesus we are lost. Without him, we don’t have hope. But in Jesus we have hope, we have peace, we have life everlasting. We need to remember this, especially, when the happenings in the world try to threaten our sense of security and steal our joy.

The darker the world gets, the brighter the Light of the World shines. This is not all there is. Our God is alive and active. And that gives us hope even when nothing makes sense. This is not the end. Better things ahead. Thank you, God!

 

Gracious God,
We bring our devastated hearts to you.
We can’t make it on our own
Heal us, heal the families affected by tragedies.
Pour out hope, faith, and love!
Enable us to rejoice in you.
Thank you for saving us from the darkness!
In Jesus’ name,
Amen

Q4U: How can we go on? What/Who is your strength in the midst of hardships?

Be blessed, my fellow pilgrim, as you dare to live boldly no matter how dark it seems to be getting.

Image courtesy of Jude Beck/Unsplash.com, design by Mari-Anna Stålnacke. Some parts of this post have been previously published. I am linking up with Unite the Bloggersphere and #tellhisstory.