A Secure Hope -  Your Nightly Prayer 

A Secure Hope
Your Nightly Prayer for Dec. 31, 2024
by Mike Leake

TONIGHT’S SCRIPTURE

"…kept in heaven for you, who by God’s power are being guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time." - 1 Peter 1:4b-5

SOMETHING TO PONDER 

“Guard this with your life,” the man says as he hands an engagement ring to his five-year-old nephew three weeks before the proposal. You’re shaking your head, aren’t you? You know there is a very good chance that he’s going to have to propose with an old bread tie—because that diamond is as good as gone. Even if our little dude has the best intentions, he’s five. There are many things that might cause a five-year-old to lose a diamond ring. It’s not very secure in his hands. In reality, many of the things we value are not any more secure—we only think they are. You can work hard at your job and still lose it because of circumstances outside your control. You can go to great lengths to take care of your body and still get a cancer diagnosis. 

Thankfully, this inheritance that will never perish, spoil, or fade is far more secure. It is not kept in the hands of a feeble boy or even a powerful man. It is kept by Almighty God. “Kept in heaven” is a divine passive—that is a fancy way of saying that God is the One who does the keeping. You can’t get any more security than this. Now, some might believe that we can choose to walk away from this inheritance. But I think verse 5 undercuts that idea. By God’s power we are being guarded through faith. The very thing that could cause us to lose the inheritance—or walk away from Christ—is being held back by the mighty hand of God. As Jude says, 

“He is able to keep us from falling.” 

Do you realize how secure you are in Christ? These promises are as good as yours. Take heart. You have a very certain hope. Because your hope is secure, you are secure—no matter what this world throws at you. God is busy keeping us. 

YOUR NIGHTLY PRAYER 

Father,
I know that if my “staying” was up to me, I’d have already walked away. I am thankful that you will “hold me fast”. I celebrate that my inheritance is safe and secure in you. It gives me great joy that my salvation is tied to the unshakeable Christ. Help me to live in that security.
Amen.

THREE THINGS TO MEDITATE UPON 

1. All the times God has held onto you when you felt like giving up

2. Everything that is insecure in our hands

3. Everything that is secure in God’s hands

Photo Credit:©GettyImages/ibrahim eraslan

Mike Leake is husband to Nikki and father to Isaiah and Hannah. He is also the lead pastor at Calvary of Neosho, MO. Mike is the author of Torn to Heal and Jesus Is All You Need. His writing home is http://mikeleake.net and you can connect with him on Twitter @mikeleake. Mike has a new writing project at Proverbs4Today.

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