Featured Artist: Maureen Chung
Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer. | Romans 12:12
Be Joyful In Hope
There’s a reason we are called to be joyful, even through the tough times. As believers, we have hope. It’s easy to be perfectly happy when everything is going well, but what about when things are going terribly?
Regardless of what is happening now, someday we will be spending eternity with the God of the universe. That’s the hope that will get you and I through the tough times we face in life. Imagine the testimony it would be to others to see you finding JOY during a difficult time! That right there is being joyful in hope. And Christ is the only one who can bring joy like that into our lives.
Be Patient in Affliction
Patience is lacking these days. In a world where everything is *instant,* we have all adjusted to the idea of getting what we need in just a matter of seconds. But as we are all well-aware, that is not how situations in life always turn out.
An affliction, something that causes pain and suffering, isn’t always capable of being fixed instantaneously. Showing patience in the midst of these tough times is what sets us apart as people who trust the Lord with their problems. We truly believe that He is capable of helping us with every problem area in life, so we don’t need to worry or be impatient! He’s got it under control!
Be Faithful In Prayer
What does it take to be faithful to someone? This could be quite a lengthy list but a few things I’d point out would be time, energy, resources, consideration, carefulness, and love.
Now apply that to prayer. What does it mean to be faithful in prayer? It means that your prayer life is constant. That conversation between you and God doesn’t stop at the end of your church service – it carries on throughout the rest of the week too. It means that you work at it every day, and that you dedicate a time in your day that is between you and God alone. It means you gather your resources, and muster up the energy to pray about things are that going to stretch your faith and increase your love for the Lord day-by-day.
We can not forget that we have direct access to God through prayer.
He just wants us to use it.
Can you imagine how different our lives would look if we meditated on today’s verse every morning? What a beautiful reminder of how to live a life that is pleasing to our Maker.
Jenny, I loved how you connected being faithful to a person & faithful in prayer! It definitely does take “time, energy, resources, consideration, carefulness, and love” in order to be FAITHFUL in prayer. And when we are faithful in prayer, we are also being faithful in our relationship with the Lord: keeping our hearts, minds, & eyes on Him alone; selflessly seeking His will above our own; confessing, repenting, praising, thanking, LOVING. Praying is like exercise – it strengthens our spiritual muscles, allowing us to remain faithful to the One who has ALWAYS been faithful & loving to us!