RISE – Holding On To Hope Devotion

HOLDING ON TO HOPE DEVOTION

Monday 1st February 2021

Hi Friends, 
Happy New Month! Welcome to this week’s edition of Holding on to Hope Devotion, with yours truly Pastor Ve. This week’s devotion is a post instead of a video. 

Walter Anderson, a writer, once wrote “bad things do happen; how I respond to them defines my character and the quality of my life. I can choose to sit in perpetual sadness, immobilized by the gravity of my loss, or I can choose to rise from the pain and treasure the most precious gift I have – life itself”

RISE – it is a small word but it is very powerful. Rise means to move upward, to become higher, to get up from something. I will give you a few examples: when we are awake we rise from our beds, the sun rises every morning, you rise on your job (also known as a promotion), planes rise into the sky; and we rise in our Christian journey to a higher level. A riser is a person who does all of these things. Rise is always an upward movement. We cannot rise downward or backward; always upward.

Jesus saith unto him, Rise, take up thy bed, and walk. And immediately the man was made whole, and took up his bed, and walked: and on the same day was the sabbath. (John 5:8-9 KJV)

In John 5, we learn of a certain man who was sitting at the Bethesda pool for 38 years. That is a very long time he was waiting to be healed; but one day, Jesus passed by and saw him; and spoke to him as recorded in verse 8 above. Look at what happened in verse 9, the man received his healing immediately. We all know that Jesus himself was a riser. He died on the cross, he was buried in the grave but he rose. The cross could not hold him; the grave could not contain him. Because Jesus got up, you can get up too; you can rise. You can rise above obstacles, problems, circumstances, issues and negative situations.

Each of us have our own cross or crosses in our lives; but do not stay nailed to them. Rise from your cross, in the name of Jesus. Or, you might feel like you are in a grave and there is no way out. But rise, rise, rise, I command you to rise, in the name of Jesus! If we go and look for Jesus’ tomb, how will we find it? We will find it empty because he is not there, for he has risen.

There is an army rising up in the body of Christ. Will you arise and become a part of this army today? I encourage you to rise up, and be the best that you can be; because the world is waiting for you. You have potential, talents, skills, gifts that you need to show the world. There will be challenges along the way, but still rise! Rise up against the odds; and rise up in faith knowing that God is with you, and he is fighting for you. You do not have to rise alone.

Have a blessed week! Remember to bloom where you are planted!