If Not

May the Lord direct your hearts to the love of God and to the perseverance of Christ. – 2 Thessalonians 3:5

Don’t you think this would make a great benediction to a local church worship service? God's love and Christ's endurance are two powerful elements needed to navigate the Christian life and it would be good to often be reminded of these truths.

If not for the love of God, salvation would be impossible. His love for us and through us motivates us to take His gospel to a lost world. God’s love, as perfectly illustrated and accomplished in His sacrifice, should serve as a consistent reminder of our own responsibility to love our “neighbors.”

If not for the perseverance of Christ, salvation would be at best uncertain and at worst unavailable. His perseverance for us and through us ensures our eternal security and gives us the grace to keep carrying His message when the path seems difficult and weariness is overcoming.

May our hearts always be directed by the Lord to these inexhaustible resources, His love and perseverance, today and all the days to come.

Discouraged not by difficulties without, or the anguish of ages within, the heart listens to a secret voice that whispers: "Be not dismayed; in the future lies the Promised Land." – Helen Keller