Once I was so overcome with sin I had no hope. Worldly-wise counselors gave many suggestions for help, but nothing they knew could solve my problem. But just at the right time, while I was powerless, Jesus rescued me. Now, no matter how strong the enemy seems, I remember the One who is more powerful and take hope to overcome.
Once I was so sick I did not think I would survive. Some around me were even less hopeful than I was. But through a way I would not have chosen, God healed my body and gave me four incredible years. Now, no matter how bad I feel, I remember God’s power and promises and gain hope for tomorrow.
Once there was a little baby born to a mom who was serving time for wrongdoing. He didn’t really have a place to go, but a chaplain in the prison system who often helped mothers in such situations called a family who had volunteered to serve. Now this little boy is being raised by his mom who is free and following her Master. And though John fell a couple of weeks ago and broke his leg, he is a happy toddler whose future is anything but hopeless. (You should see him walk with his cast 
)
Last Sunday, in the Atlanta newspaper, there was a front page article about a man in his thirties who had gotten out of prison, gone to college, and completed a degree with great success. Though his crime was committed at age seventeen, his past still haunts him. Even though this bright fellow has done so much to overcome, no one will hire him. There was little hope in the article and a reader could understand how such a man could easily give up and go back to his old life. In the spiritual world, we know this is the devil’s desire for anyone who tries to walk a better path.
Susan and I understand a little about this guy’s dilemma. Terri has worked odd jobs for the year she has lived with us. She is very sharp and a hard worker. Her goal is to live by herself and raise her children. Two times she had well-paying jobs fall through because of the results of her background check. One employer did all she could to bypass the rules because Terri was such a good worker. But John’s mother has persevered. A couple of Wednesday nights ago, after humbly asking a group to pray for her, Terri received a phone call within the hour that gave her a job for the holiday season. Without faith, though, it is easy to think her situation is hopeless. But we believe one day someone will give Terri a chance that will lead to the type of job she needs to take care of her family. Until then, we remember that “suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope.”
“Remember that one time you were separate from Christ, excluded from citizenship in Israel and foreigners to the covenants of the promise, without hope and without God in the world. But now in Christ Jesus you who were far away have been brought near through the blood of Christ. For he himself is our peace, who has made the two one and has destroyed the barrier, the dividing wall of hostility, by abolishing in his flesh the law with its commandments and regulations… Consequently, you are no longer foreigners and aliens, but fellow citizens with God’s people and members of God’s household, built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the chief cornerstone. In him the whole building is joined together and rises to become a holy temple in the Lord. And in him you too are being built together to become a dwelling in which God lives by his Spirit.” Ephesians 2:12-22