Praise Him For Living Hope

"Praise Him For Living Hope"
By Zach Wood
1 Peter 1:3-5
Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ!  In 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 can never perish, spoil or fade.  This inheritance is kept in heaven for you.

For the past couple of weeks, I have been reading through this passage.  Peter is talking about the praise we should have to God for the living hope He offers.  Each time I read through, God shows me something new and challenges my faith.  What concerns me most about this passage is how far it seems to be from the life I find myself living.  We have a living hope in God, but I find myself not truly living out the appreciation and excitement in that God has given me hope.  

How about you?  Do you find yourself just going through each day trying to just get through the day and move on?  Are you appreciative of the hope God has given to you?  Do you even really stop to think about this hope He gives?  Many of us would probably have to admit that we do not.  This is not saying we never have appreciation, but we do tend to let our excitement for the hope He gives be lessened.  We do not necessarily mean to live this way, but it becomes a slow fade and we become distracted and forget just how awesome of a God we truly serve.

He gives great mercy!  He has given us new birth!  This new birth is in a living hope, not a dead hope.  We receive an inheritance that can never ever perish, spoil or fade!  Now that is exciting, is it not?!  We have this inheritance waiting for us for when we go Home to see Him!  That is really exciting!

So, how are you truly living your life each day?  Are you excited for the hope He has given you?  Are you truly thankful and giving Him praise for the living hope that is found only in Him?  

This inheritance we have in Him will never rot away.  It will never get mold or rust out on us.  It will be better than anything we can ever make on this earth!  Now that is an inheritance I would like to have!  

I pray, that as each of us end this year, we would stop to reflect on the awesome things God has done through us and in our lives.  Take time to reflect on the hope He has given to you.  

Have a Happy New Year!