Devotional Song: … GO TO THIS LINK … Please take the time to take in a YouTube video with song and lyrics from the group, Mercy Me, singing … I Can Only Imagine … poignantly singing of the reality and hope we have to spend eternity with Jesus.
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Highlight Verse[s]: 1st Thessalonians 4:13-14 [NLT] … 13 And now, dear brothers and sisters, we want you to know what will happen to the believers who have died so you will not grieve like people who have no hope. 14 For since we believe that Jesus died and was raised to life again, we also believe that when Jesus returns, God will bring back with him the believers who have died.
… Our assurance from God’s word that death is not the end for those who are in Christ.
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Highlight Passage [context]: 1st Thessalonians 4:13-18 [NLT] … USE THIS LINK …
… God, thru Paul, gives Christians the hope we have in Christ that those we love will be resurrected to be with Jesus forever.
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Reference Passage : … Luke 9:23 [NKJV] … USE THIS LINK …
… God’s promise, thru Paul, that after death, those who are in Christ, will be presented to Him for eternity.
Reference Passage : … 1 Peter 1:3 [NLT] … 3 Let us thank the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. It was through His loving-kindness that we were born again to a new life and have a hope that never dies. This hope is ours because Jesus was raised from the dead.
… Our eternal hope, after death, is to be with Jesus, … a hope we have because of His resurrection.
My Devotional Journal: Today's ODB author, Cindy Hess Kasper, used a personal story of saying temporary goodbyes to a loved one. The ODB author wrote: My granddaughter Allyssa and I have a regular routine we go through when we say goodbye. We wrap our arms around each other [see photo] and begin to loudly wail with dramatic sobs for about twenty seconds. Then we step back and casually say, “See ya,” and turn away. Despite our silly practice, we always expect that we will see each other again—soon.
Saying “goodbye” to a loved one whom we’ll see again is one thing; but the goodbyes we feel when a loved one dies is another kind of “goodbye,” isn’t it? And the latter can hurt deeply, … because the longing to share life with the loved-one is now gone. However, … for the Christian, … we can be uplifted in the passing of a loved-one who is in Christ whom we know - beyond doubt - will be with Jesus and is in heaven with Him for eternity [see Scriptures above].
As Mercy Me sings in the linked song, “I Can Only Imagine!” But that imagination is enough for me, … because of the hope we have as Christians to be with Jesus when He calls us home to be with Him for eternity. And any loved-one who has gone on before us will be there too.
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My THANKFULNESS: … Oh Lord, Jesus, thank You for this life now, but even more for the eternal life we have with You in glory.
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My Prayer Today: Abba Father, … King Jesus, … Precious Spirit … Oh Lord, … I long to be with You in glory! … Amen
Blogger Note: Everyday during this year, my daily devotional blogs are influenced by the reading and study of the online devotional blog entitled “Our Daily Bread,” distributed online via email by RBC Ministries. If you GO TO THIS LINK on the date of my blog, you can read/study the ODB blogs; or you can subscribe to the blog via email at that site.
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