Loving God of peace, pour out Your peace and presence in the life and challenges of this dear reader; in Christ Jesus I pray, amen.
Our text for today comes from 1 Peter 1: 3 What a God we have! And how fortunate we are to have him, this Father of our Master Jesus! Because Jesus was raised from the dead, we've been given a brand-new life and have everything to live for, 4 including a future in heaven - and the future starts now! 5 God is keeping careful watch over us and the future. The Day is coming when you'll have it all - life healed and whole. 6 I know how great this makes you feel, even though you have to put up with every kind of aggravation in the meantime. 7 Pure gold put in the fire comes out of it proved pure; genuine faith put through this suffering comes out proved genuine. When Jesus wraps this all up, it's your faith, not your gold, that God will have on display as evidence of his victory. 8 You never saw him, yet you love him. You still don't see him, yet you trust him - with laughter and singing. 9 Because you kept on believing, you'll get what you're looking forward to: total salvation. (The Message)
It's like being in Oprah's audience on the day she shares her favorite things with everyone there. It's like being in Regis and Kelly's audience when the caller not only picks your number but gets the answer right and wins for themselves and you the grand prize of the day! No. It's better than that, hard as that may be for some to believe. "Because Jesus was raised from the dead, (you and I) have been given a brand-new life and have everything to live for, including a future in heaven - and the future starts now!" Let that sink in. Now, hear this part, "The Day is coming when you'll have it all - life healed and whole. I know how great this makes you feel, even though you have to put up with every kind of aggravation in the meantime." Let that sink in. Easter did not end with the tail lights of your children's car driving off back to their home. Easter, in fact, does not end at all. Easter was but the start of great things for those who believe. And as Peter has shared in this first letter of his, you and I have it all, and we're talking the stuff that counts forever.
After your devotional time you'll have to answer the phone or the door and reality will walk in, again. But as Peter also said our faith is a faith that endures trials and testing, just like gold comes out pure from the fire, so do we. Live a brand-new life and with an attitude that says, I have everything to live for!
PRAYER: Loving God,thank You again for Easter and for the gifts of Easter that never end. I thank You for the new perspective on life and how I will make it through whatever may be trying to get me down right now. I thank You for the victory that is mine in all of life in Jesus Christ's precious and powerful name, amen.
Have a great and blessed day in the Lord!
Eradio Valverde
P.S. Please be in prayer for my cousin, Bobbie Garibaldo, who is undergoing gall bladder surgery this morning. Also, for the daughter of Rev. Steve Purdy, Alicia Purdy Carrizales, who had a rough delivery of a new son yesterday. Pray for Dylan Mark Carrizales, who is Rev. Purdy's new grandson. Thank you for your prayers!
