Win-Win with God

I have told you this, so that you might have peace in your hearts because of me. While you are in the world, you will have to suffer. But cheer up! I have defeated the world.

John 16:33 (CEV)

Division and hatred. Wars and political corruption. Pollution and global warming. Trafficking and abuse, poverty and addictions, cancer, and other diseases.

This world seems to be hurling toward destruction and the news feeds and social media ensure we know every gruesome detail. Yet people wonder why so many teens are depressed and anxious!

It can be hard to believe in a good, powerful God when it seems all we see is evil and sadness. But part of the problem is we take so many good, amazing miracles for granted. The sun coming up on a new day brings hope. The very fact that we can breathe requires multiple intricate systems to work correctly—and we don’t even think about it! The love of a parent or friend is more powerful than hate.

And even if, or when, the worst happens, we still win. How’s that? Jesus conquered death and made it possible for those who love and serve him to have everlasting life with God—the source of all good. This power that was strong enough to raise Jesus from death is the same power that lives in us when we invite Jesus into our lives!

So for Christians, we win if we live and we win if we die. We don’t have to fear any evil. People who completely embrace this live fearlessly and joyfully. Will you choose to embrace Jesus today?

SPIRITUAL FITNESS TRAINING

Taking moments to slow down and be with God will help you focus on him and see the good around you. “Breath prayers” help us settle our minds and think about the Lord. Try this: when you breathe in, pray “Abba” and when you exhale pray “I belong to you.” Repeat this for a minute or two. (Abba means “Daddy” and is the name Jesus used when praying to God.) Another idea is to color something intricate that takes your mind off other things—focused only on the small lines and shapes you’re coloring in.

INSPIRATION

“Someday you will read in the papers that Moody is dead. Don’t you believe a word of it! At that moment I shall be more alive than I am now; I shall have gone up higher, that is all, out of this old clay tenement into a house that is immortal.”

—Dwight L. Moody, American evangelist and publisher from the 1800s

KEEP IT GOING

Related passages: These additional verses will help you expand Scriptural knowledge and place on the armor of God’s Word to tackle each day. Swipe to read the passages today.

Psalm 91:14–15

Psalm 121:7–8

1 Corinthians 15:56–57

Romans 8:37–39