Session 1
A reason to hope
From Preparing Your Heart to Go: A 7-Day Devotional for NewSpring Mission Trips
For in this hope we were saved. Now hope that is seen is not hope. For who hopes for what he sees? But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait for it with patience. — Romans 8:24-25
I pray that your hearts will be flooded with light so that you can understand the confident hope he has given to those he called — his holy people who are his rich and glorious inheritance. — Ephesians 1:18 (NLT)
Hope is the expectation and desire for a certain outcome. Before Jesus, we put our hope in lots of places — in our bank accounts, our good grades, our work ethic.
But when we surrender our lives to Jesus, we place our hope in Him and the promise that He is returning and set the world right. Poverty, pain, and injustice will not exist in eternity. When God’s will is done, life on earth will be as it is in heaven (Matthew 6:10).
As we serve, the greatest gift to a community is not a meal, a building, or a medical center, but the hope that comes from knowing Jesus. Building structures, feeding families, teaching students — these efforts will make a short-term difference but Jesus makes an eternal difference.
The hope you carry in you is the most important gift you can give others. When you arrive, get to know the families you’re serving and the people you’re serving with. One conversation could be what draws someone closer to Jesus, the source of real, lasting change.
Reflect
What do you hope to see Jesus do this week?
Pray
Ask the Lord to give you a sense of expectation as you prepare for your trip. Ask Him to save, to heal, to set free. Then, expect Him to do these things.
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