The Anchor, Week 1: My Anchor

The Anchor:When the storms of life come and we are tossed back and forth by the winds of change, we need an anchor.  Something that will give us security, peace, and comfort.  Find out what that anchor is and how it can save your life. Title to my message: My Anchor (Hebrews 6:19) (NIV) “We have this hope as an anchor for the soul, firm and secure…” (Proverbs 13:12) (NIV) “Hope deferred makes the heart sick…” Without an Anchor: We become disoriented. (Job 17:15) (NIV) “Where then is my hope?  Who can see any hope for me?” We began to drift. (Isaiah 53:6) (NIV) “We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to his own way.” We find ourselves in despair. (2 Corinthians 1:8) (NIV) “We were under great pressure, far beyond our ability to endure, so that we despaired of life itself.” Hope is not: Wishful thinking Blind optimism Ambitious dreams                  Hope is a confident expectation based on something solid. (Hebrews 11:1) (NLT) “Faith is the confidence that what we hope for will actually happen; it gives us assurance about things we cannot see. (Psalm 71:14) (NIV) “As for me, I will always have hope; I will praise you more and more.”  How can I find my anchor? Finding Hope: 1. Hope is anchored in trust. (Romans 4:18) (NIV) “Against all hope, Abraham in hope believed…” (Psalm 42:11) (NLT) Why am I discouraged? Why is my heart so sad? I will put my hope in God! I will praise him again—my Savior and my God. 2. Hope is anchored to something unseen. (2 Corinthians 4:17-18) (NIV) “For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all.  So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.” 3. Hope is anchored in a relationship with God.   (Romans 15:13) (GWT)  “May God, the source of hope, fill you with joy and peace through your faith in Him.  Then you’ll overflow with hope…” (Psalm 62:5) (NLT) “Let all that I am wait quietly before God, for my hope is in him. (Isaiah 40:31) (NIV)  “…but those who hope in the LORD will renew their strength.  They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.”