I like to watch the NCAA basketball tournament. But sometimes I’m busy when a game I really want to see is on. When that happens, I record the game so I can watch it later. I try to avoid hearing who won the game before I watch it, but today I saw a news clip that let me know the winning team. Knowing the ending really changed my reactions during the game. When you know the finale, you can relax during the tense times. Even when it seems all is lost, you can know for a fact that it is all going to come out perfect in the end. This makes me think of Good Friday. I can’t imagine how the disciples felt when it was happening in real time, but here’s the good news for us: we know the ending! Friday had to be a dark, frightening time for the disciples, but we now know Sunday is coming. And Sunday changes everything!
In Peter 1:3-4 “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-kept in heaven for you.” When things don’t look the way they should and life is harder than we would choose it to be, we can look forward knowing there are better days ahead of us. Heaven, which is too wonderful to imagine is assured, and there are better days to expect here on earth too. Psalm 27:13 says, “I am still confident of this; I will see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living.” So if your Friday is dark, look expectantly to Sunday. It’s coming!
The rain is falling softly outside my window today. It heralds in the beginning of a new season. There’s something about the coming of spring that produces abundant hope. Hope for a new beginning, a fresh start, or a change in circumstance. God gets credit for the seasons, and for the hope that stirs our hearts. Genesis 1:14 , “And God said, ‘Let there be lights in the expanse of sky to separate the day from the night, and let them serve as signs to mark seasons and days and years…'” 
As Christians, we’re called upon to be more like Jesus. Most of the time, we do this by focusing on His love. And that’s the right way to start. Jesus said in Matthew 22:37-39, “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and all your soul and with all your mind,” and “Love your neighbor as yourself.” Those commandments are a big undertaking in any life, and we must continually pursue them, but today let’s focus on another character trait of Jesus. The disciple Matthew tells a story about when Jesus and the disciples were crossing over the Sea of Galilee. He said in Matthew 8:24, “Without warning, a furious storm came up…” Sound familiar? Had any furious storms come up in your life? Have any of them come without warning? In this case, the disciples panicked, and surprisingly, many of them were experienced fisherman!
When the military needs to dig in, they make foxholes. These are considered ‘defensive fighting positions.’ When we go through tough times, we definitely need a fighting position. Taking the militaries lead, we need to address two things regarding ‘digging in.’ First, we have to make the hole big enough. We might think digging in means praying about the problem and asking others for prayer, and that certainly is part of it. But remember, we have to make the whole big enough, so we must do even more.
Seemingly from out of nowhere, a friend of mine had to take her mother to the hospital with serious health concerns. She was fighting fluid around her lungs, extremely low blood pressure, and a serious life-threatening infection. The family rode a roller coaster for days. There were moments when all hope seemed lost and times when they saw slight improvements. Although the crisis was unexpected, the family ran straight to the only One who could help. Isaiah 41:10 says, “So do not fear, for I am with you, do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.” It’s incredible that at this very moment her mom has been moved from the ICU Unit. And thankfully, she plans to be home soon.
I recently read an article that made reference to ‘God’s Hour’. It didn’t explain what that meant but it really intrigued me. What if we chose to live in God’s Hour all the time? Our lives can get pretty complicated and we can be overwhelmed by all the junk that is thrown at us. Problems in a relationship, a health crisis, financial woes, or job frustrations can ruin our day. These are just a few of the things that cause us stress and fill our thoughts.