Jesus Brought Me Near

"I was far away from you; Jesus brought me near.

And I was broken off from you; Jesus brought me near.

My hope, my song, my sacrifice of praise

is Christ crucified for me.

My strength, my boast, my sacrifice of praise 

is the mention of your name."

The most life-giving feeling in the world is the constant revelation of our mended relationship with God through Jesus Christ. For most it's not something that comes just once, but it constantly rolls over you like waves on the ocean. Those lyrics, that spoken word, the type on a page, the sight of something created, the still small voice, a thought that encompasses...all things that the Lord uses to place moments like this in our path. It's those times that keep my hope alive. Because ultimately, my hope is Jesus. He is our only hope. When you seek him, you will find him. Without him, we are lost! But because of him, he has brought us the gift of life. 

I can attest to this. Life. "The quality that distinguishes a vital and functional being from a dead body." How do I know what life is? Because I have experienced being dead...spiritually. Looking for hope when deep down you don't know the end to your "hope". It was just a guess of what you want to happen. How do I know our new hope is the only of it's kind? Because it has an end. It's there waiting for us! We have the expectation of eternal life with our creator because Jesus died for our sins and broke that barrier that had been built up so long. Because of this, we can now can have a relationship with our Father in heaven. We can look toward the future and see Him. We can see all the promises he has given me in his Word. We see what he is planning for all of us in the end...a life so perfect with Him that we can't even wrap our minds around it now. 

It's all there. He continues to remind us of what he intends for our relationship with Him. The hope God offers us is paid for, written down, and continues to be fulfilled daily. Not only that, but he loves to remind us of the precious gift of true life that we get to walk in. 

When we ask him for a reminder of that hope, he is so willing to show us. When we feel discouraged or sad, we can place our hope in him even when we don't "feel" it because we know it's true! It's our solid rock. We can hold on to us and it will never leave us. It's not an emotion that will come and go, but a promise.

"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!" Psalm 42:5 

Be encouraged. Our hope is everlasting!