Hope Begins With Jesus

Whether your life feels wrecked right now, it has before, or it does in the future. You may not know that there is a reason behind those moments. Suffering stings, but it serves a purpose.

The story of Joseph is the story of a man who waits and waits some more, but he doesn’t give up in the waiting, Joseph perseveres. Joseph’s story shows how to continue on with hope and move from the waiting place that feels like prison to peace, to Persevere.

Jesus’ priority is not your successes, especially not according to the world’s standard because it is your failures that do the most to form you. Jesus uses these moments as we are Shaped by Suffering.

The story of Joseph has similarities to Jesus and the places in the story that look like the end are a plot twist. Jesus' crucifixion looked like the end of Hope, but it became an Easter with Hope.

No matter how your past was created, by your choices or the choices of others, you don’t overcome the past by running from but by working through it, so that in Jesus’ hands he can bring healing and write a Redemption Story.

Ultimately, like each of us, Esau had a choice. To choose how he responded to what had happened. Your choice will determine if you are shaped by the past or defined by the past. When you Choose to Overcome the past, you are choosing forgiveness, freedom and hope.

No matter who we are Jesus takes us as we are.

Humanity now has a past that will have to be overcome, but in the hands of Jesus your past can become a story of hope. A story of Jesus' power to turn Brokenness to Blessing because no matter what is in your past, Brokenness is never a Boundary for God's Blessing. Today, we’ll see the brokenness of Gen 3 show up in the life of Ishmael and what God does to bring blessing.

From the beginning, God designed us for a Rhythm of Rest and we need this rhythm to flourish. But many of us are going at a pace that is unsustainable and unhealthy.

We are designed by God, Designed to Flourish, but when we try to find our identity elsewhere, we are robbed of the flourishing God designed us for. We flourish in Identity before Activity because what you do can change, but who you are never will.

Our world is clearly realizing what the Bible stated long ago - “It is not good for man to be alone. You weren’t made to be alone; you were made to be known. Being known requires relationships, and we were Designed to Flourish through Relationships

The ultimate purpose of God’s design is flourishing, which reveals to us that God Designed for Good. Our ability to experience God’s Good Design and to flourish is based upon how we face our questions, doubts and the realities of life, not running from them.

With a design, it means that there’s a way to flourish, but as the designer, God determines the way, not us. In the story of Gideon, God shows the way to flourish, but it is not the way any of us would take.

"But what if the pressure is off? What if the story of your life didn't actually begin with you? What if you were Designed to Flourish, and to understand how we flourish, all we have to do is go back to the very beginning?

If we don’t look in the spiritual mirror and see how we are changing, we may end up in a place we don’t want to be in. We need the spiritual mirror to help us answer the question - Who Am I Becoming?

Whatever you decide to do with the time you have now, one thing that won’t retire is Jesus’ mission. The Mission Never Retires. Jesus' mission to change lives, to bring freedom and hope, is bound to God’s time not ours. The Apostle Paul is likely thinking about how he has spent his time and his desire to finish well. But you don't finish well by sprinting the last lap; you finish well by establishing the pace right now. The habits you set in your 20s determine how you cross the finish line in your 80s. Knowing that the Mission Never Retires and keeping Jesus’ mission in focus, no matter how old you are or what stage of life you are in, enables you to experience a full life and to finish well.

The apostle Paul faced many trials and struggles, but was able to keep the attitude of Never Give Up because he learned there are things you do need to give up. You need to Surrender Control.

Hope Remains because Jesus shows up. You may not feel hopeful and wonder if Jesus will show up, But as we continue in the book of Acts, we’ll see how Hope Remains as Jesus shows up.

Challenges to our focus in life are inevitable. One of those challenges is pain. There is not a single person who will get through life without pain, but through a personal relationship with Jesus, you can gain a Perspective of Pain that will enable you to maintain your Focus.

The Bible provides the Spiritual GPS, yes spiritual, because how we engage people and treat them is a spiritual issue. The second greatest command is to love your neighbor as yourself. The increase of loneliness is a direct result of the lack of conversation and discourse with our neighbors. It is even more so when we have opposing views of the issues we are facing today. But Jesus’ actions and the example of His followers shows us that we can develop our Spiritual GPS to Discover God’s Will even when Facing Opposition.

In the first century, the same struggle existed that exists today. Is Jesus the greatest con man that has ever lived or is He God in the flesh? How you answer that affects everything else because the religious leaders believed Jesus was a liar and they wanted Him dead. Jesus’ followers believed He was God in the flesh and they wanted him alive? What about you? How do you want Jesus? Do you want him dead or alive?