Opendoor Youth Camp: Day #3
At some point in our lives, I’m sure all of us have felt alone or out of place. I moved several times growing up, and every time I moved, there was a new sense of anxiety about meeting new people and making new friends. Will they like me? What part of my personality should I shift so that I will have a better chance of fitting in? Oftentimes, life can feel just like this. We wake up one morning and face a new set of challenges, different from the day before. If we are being honest, sometimes life is just hard. What if I told you that God saw this coming, and part of the reason life is full of challenges is that, much like moving from town to town, we are not home? In other words, we have not reached our final destination. When you chose to follow God, you were immediately set apart and destined for more. The Bible teaches us that trials and suffering are a part of this world, but we do not have to face them with fear or despair for two main reasons.
Christ has already overcome this world.
“I have told you all this so that you may have peace in me. Here on earth you will have many trials and sorrows. But take heart, because I have overcome the world.” - John 16:33 NLT
Our home is in Heaven, not on this earth.
But we are citizens of heaven, where the Lord Jesus Christ lives. And we are eagerly waiting for him to return as our Savior. He will take our weak mortal bodies and change them into glorious bodies like his own, using the same power with which he will bring everything under his control. - Philippians 3:20-21 NLT
So what do we do here on Earth while we wait for our heavenly home? Great question. First, we have hope! This is important because hope is the thing that ultimately sets us apart from the world. When challenges of this world come to us, we can face them boldly head-on because we know that Jesus has already overcome this world and there is nothing that will keep us from our home in Heaven. Second, we are hope. Scripture teaches us that one of our main purposes on this earth is to spread the gospel of hope to everyone we come in contact with. That is what being a living sacrifice is all about - surrendering to the will of the Father by laying down any earthly desires I may have and picking up the desires of Heaven. So be that hope to others, the light of salvation, so we bring as many people as possible into the citizenship of Heaven with us.
PRAY
Ask God to remind you that you can have the hope of Heaven no matter what happens here on Earth.
SPREAD HOPE
Start today by spreading the hope of Heaven. Be a light of positivity to everyone you come in contact with, whether it is friends, counselors, or camp staff. Live today like you are a citizen of Heaven!
Christ has already overcome this world.
“I have told you all this so that you may have peace in me. Here on earth you will have many trials and sorrows. But take heart, because I have overcome the world.” - John 16:33 NLT
Our home is in Heaven, not on this earth.
But we are citizens of heaven, where the Lord Jesus Christ lives. And we are eagerly waiting for him to return as our Savior. He will take our weak mortal bodies and change them into glorious bodies like his own, using the same power with which he will bring everything under his control. - Philippians 3:20-21 NLT
So what do we do here on Earth while we wait for our heavenly home? Great question. First, we have hope! This is important because hope is the thing that ultimately sets us apart from the world. When challenges of this world come to us, we can face them boldly head-on because we know that Jesus has already overcome this world and there is nothing that will keep us from our home in Heaven. Second, we are hope. Scripture teaches us that one of our main purposes on this earth is to spread the gospel of hope to everyone we come in contact with. That is what being a living sacrifice is all about - surrendering to the will of the Father by laying down any earthly desires I may have and picking up the desires of Heaven. So be that hope to others, the light of salvation, so we bring as many people as possible into the citizenship of Heaven with us.
PRAY
Ask God to remind you that you can have the hope of Heaven no matter what happens here on Earth.
SPREAD HOPE
Start today by spreading the hope of Heaven. Be a light of positivity to everyone you come in contact with, whether it is friends, counselors, or camp staff. Live today like you are a citizen of Heaven!
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