Advance: Living Unstuck & Moving Forward in FaithSample

Day 7: From Discouragement to Hope:
At some point in life, most of us experience discouragement. Things you were expecting to happen didn’t happen, or things you had been working towards or planning didn’t happen like you thought. You may be facing major loss or discouragement right now in your life. What we need to remember in the midst of disappointment and discouragement is that we can still move forward in hope.

Hebrews 6:19 (NIV) says, “We have this hope as an anchor for the soul, firm and secure.” Jesus is our hope. When we go through challenges, He is the one who can keep us strong.

The Lord reminds me of Isaiah 61:3 (NIV), which says that God gives those who grieve a “crown of beauty instead of ashes, the oil of joy instead of mourning, and a garment of praise instead of a spirit of despair.” Whatever you’ve gone through in the present or past, there is hope.

Maybe you’ve been through a season of loss, but God can give you beauty for ashes and the oil of joy where there has been mourning. Our joy is not based on hype but on our hope in Jesus.