Is your life full of hope and joy today? Are you living with direction and optimism? The joy of the Lord is our strength. Are you feeling it?

1 Peter 1:3-5 “Praise be to the God 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.”

The inheritance we share by faith is something solid and reliable. It can never perish, spoil or fade. It is a living hope for today, and for the future. How is it that we can lose our focus and become discouraged and weary? Have we taken our eyes off of Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith? Have we let the cares and worries of this world distract us from seeing God at work in our lives? Let's lean into hope today. In reading Ephesians 1- NIV, I am struck by all the provision of God for my life. God is not a man that He should lie, and we are promised so much.

We have every spiritual blessing in Christ.

We were chosen before the creation of the world.

We have been adopted as His sons and daughters through Christ.

This was God’s will and pleasure.

He has lavished us with His grace. We don’t earn it or deserve it.

We heard the message of truth, the gospel of our salvation.

     We have forgiveness of sin and redemption in Christ.

We have been marked with the promised Holy Spirit, a guarantee of inheritance.

God placed all things under Jesus’ feet.

He has been appointed as head over the church, His body.

Paul also prays for us along these lines.

    Giving thanks for our faith.

That the Father would give us the Spirit of wisdom and revelation.

That we might know God better.

  That the eyes of our heart might be enlightened.

     That we may truly know the hope we are called to.

     He declares that our inheritance is glorious and contains incomparable power.

    It is the same strength that raised Jesus from the dead.

   Jesus has been seated in the heavenly realms, far above all rule, authority, power, and dominion, and His love is for us.

Jesus embodies all that we need, and fulfills all.

 We have a rich inheritance that is not only held for us in heavenly places, but is reserved for us to experience here and now. I encourage you to take hold of your inheritance today. It can propel you into faith, believing that God will act on your behalf. You will recognize that He is moving in our world, bringing truth. He is trustworthy and faithful. He will not disappoint. Faith, hope, and love are available to us. Grab hold of the promises of God and walk in the light as He is in the light. The blessings of God are yours.