Supposed to be...
Luke 24:21… “We had hoped he was the Messiah who had come to rescue Israel. This all happened three days ago.”
From the scripture passage, it seems as though Jesus’ followers, in the few short hours and days after His crucifixion, are lost, confused and struggling to keep hope alive. They had believed He was the long awaited Messiah, sent from God to liberate all of Israel. But in this moment, with the sudden events facing them, they seemed a bit unsure! Maybe deep in their hearts, they had lost all hope and felt as though they had been lied too.
We had hoped to get the family together for Easter. We had hoped to take a trip this spring. We had hope to work hard in this season of life to get ahead of the bills. We have hoped to see our grandkids. We had hope to finish school. We had hoped to…
You had plans, dreams and hopes as winter ended and spring arrived. Some of your plans were on the calendar, scheduled and ready for action. Other plans and hopes were still in the dreaming and planning stage, but you were still looking forward to those events. And now, your world has been turned upside down, every event from now until the end of April is cancelled or postponed and the events planned for May and through the summer are now tentative at best. How do you keep hope alive in this season of crisis? Who do you listen to and trust for truth and information?
I don’t have all the answers to your questions, but I do know how the story in Luke 24 finishes… their hope is reignited by the testimony of witnesses to those that found the tomb where Jesus had been buried, empty! They relied on eye witness accounts of others seeing angels who confirmed the news that Jesus was alive! Some had to see for themselves but confirmed the reports.
Now more than ever, we need to see clearly what God is actually doing through this crisis in our own lives. With regard to the pandemic, we need to listen to the testimony of eyewitnesses and experts who know about infectious diseases, science, medicine and those who have fought the battle on the front lines. With regard to our faith in Jesus, we need to trust the account of eyewitnesses 2000 years ago to the events involving Jesus and His resurrection from the grave. Our hope is restored when we know the truth and believe the truth in our hearts. Our hope can be restored when we put our faith in a resurrected savior whose name is Jesus. He was and is the Messiah sent from God to restore mercy, forgiveness and justice, not just for Israel, but for everyone who believes in Him. May your hope be restored today because you remember what Jesus has done in your life and the resurrection power He gives to each one of us through His spirit dwelling in our hearts. (Ephesians 1:19, 20)
Don’t worry, you will get to all the things you had planned in due time; according to God’s timetable. He hasn’t forgotten about you; He cares deeply for you and wants the best for you! Let Him restore you hope… Peace