So we do not lose heart. Though our outer self is wasting away, our inner self is being renewed day by day. For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison, as we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal.
2 Corinthians 4:16–18, ESV
It can be easy to become caught up in the events of this world. They can be overwhelming. God wants us to see differently. The suffering and struggles that we see. The voices that cry out against us who believe differently than what the world wants us to believe. The actions and words of our faith are not meant to be changed or modified because the world’s ways are changing. The Word of God is unchanging, but we hold onto the hope and promise that is eternal. We see a hope that extends far beyond what we imagine as being so wonderful in the world. The power of our faith is not in the acceptance of the things of the world but in the acceptance of Jesus Christ. Christ is not against the world but stands by the Father and the Holy Spirit in things that are against Him. God’s ways stand contrary to the ways of the worldly because the world has rejected God. It began in the Garden and has extended throughout history as we watched the rejection of God over and over again, yet our Lord continued to give hope and put His spirit in the hearts of men and women to proclaim His glory. God chose the people of Israel, and in sending His Son, He has chosen us who believe in Jesus. When people curse or turn their backs on the Bible, it is not God’s rejection of them but quite the opposite. We are meant to stand firm in the Word and proclaim His truth not as a judgment of the people but to open the eyes of those whom God has chosen so that they would accept the gift of faith and come to know the fullness of Christ in their lives. The judgment is upon us all because of the world’s rejection of God and His Word. The promise comes in the knowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord and how He has claimed us as His own. This reveals to us eternity.
Let us pray. I thank you, my heavenly Father, through Jesus Christ, your dear Son, that you have kept me this night from all harm and danger, and I ask you to protect me this day also from sin and every evil, that in all I do today, I may please you. For into your hands, I commend myself, my body and soul, and all that is mine. Let your holy angel watch over me, that the wicked foe have no power over me. Amen.