I Feel My Hope Comin'

 Dear Beloved,

This week someone close to me experienced some serious tragedy. It was bad. The reality of her grief and pain caused me grief and pain. First, I was in shock and trying to be as present as I could be with her. Then hours later, when we held a prayer call for her, the tears of grief hit me. When I got off the call, all I wanted to do was call someone and cry and process. So I did. (This is huge for me because my past self would've suppressed and isolated, praise God for emotional healing). 

                                

Beloved, please know that hope is not the absence of sadness. It is the pillar and foundation of endurance. To finish the race of life, one must have hope. To make it to heaven, one must have hope in Jesus Christ. I pray you both. I still have sadness today, but I have more hope, then I did yesterday. After I got off the phone with no else to call, though I wish I had others, I felt Holy Spirit say, "talk to me". I started singing a worship song and then another. Then I went to the Book of Psalms, the book that validates pain and emotion. 

I started off in Psalm 6, then to Psalm 42, then Psalm 145-150. By the end, I felt my hope comin. The circumstance hadn't changed, but I was reminded that God hadn't either. His works of old were good and so were the ones of TODAY. I once read a quote in the book The Hiding Place by Corrie Ten Boom that said "Heaven never panics". I was reminded of that yesterday. It wasn't to dismiss the horrific situation, but a reminder that God is still in control in the midst of what feels chaotic. 

If you're in the midst of tragedy as well, I pray you feel your feelings while drawing to Christ for hope. When everything is out of your control, drawing near to the one who has control gives you the hope needed to endure another day. Although these trials freaking suck and are massively painful, they do not last forever. In eternity pain will be a distant memory and every tear will be wiped away. If you've surrendered your life to Christ, this will be your future. If you haven't, know that the Lord has been pursuing you for a long time and He's using THIS HOPE LETTER to speak to you. No matter when you read this, HE IS CALLING YOU. I haven't written a Hope Letter in 2 years, but He strongly urged me to write this one. 

There is ONE God who created all the universe. He is the great I AM. His intention was for all his creation to be one with Him, in glory separate from pain and angst. He gave mankind full authority in the earth and free access to everything, except one thing: the tree of knowledge of good and evil. But through man's (Adam's) sin of pride, greed, and lust, the ONE commandment  given (stay away from the tree) was broken and in that moment God's relationship was broken between mankind. You and me were born in sin. We know we've sinned. We've gone against what we've known to be right and that has caused a void in our hearts that can't be filled by relationships, money, power, or fame. ONLY God, the one true God who created us can fill it. It's impossible for us to be holy on our own, our lust for self and sin won't ever allow us to do right by heaven. With this, God decided to stand in for our weakness. He being perfect and sinless cannot be connected to sin, which we're covered in. But, The Father WANTS to reconnect with us. 

We're His creation, He doesn't want to spend eternity separated from us when we die. So, He made a way. In His divine love, He came down from heaven through His son Jesus Christ and took the punishment of sin that we deserved. Our sin deserves God's wrath and separation from Him, but Christ took the wrath and separation for us through the crucifixion. He died and was buried in the grave and 3 days later he rose again, proving his deity! The blood he shed on that cross was the price paid for salvation and forgiveness of sin. You don't have to carry the guilt and shame of your sin. You don't have to live with the void in your heart. God made a way for you to reconnect, receive forgiveness and have your slate wiped clean! This is the Gospel and good news of Christ. If you truly believe that Jesus Christ is God and he died and rose again for your sins, then recite the prayer below OUTLOUD and you will be saved!

Lord Jesus, I believe you died and rose again for my sins and I ask you for forgiveness. I repent of all sin and ask you to renew my mind and clean my heart. I give you full control of my life. Please show me how to walk in righteousness, in Jesus name I pray Amen.  

Praise the Lord my new brother/sister in Christ!! Now go and watch this video to learn what's next! 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZzZ-m8C9hsA&list=PLmtSnLV8O89pDosLdVKT234erqFjJJNx-

May your hope be in Jesus Christ,

Anreka

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If You're Tired, God Is Coming

 Dear Beloved,

Am I alone in saying this year has left me tired? It just seems like one event after another whether in our nation or the world. The year of 2020 has presented many opportunities for hope to be hijacked or stolen. In spite of all the attempts, I praise God that He brings comfort through His word. I was reading Isaiah 35 and the Lord understood exactly how I was feeling. If you're tired, He understands how you feel too. 

Isaiah was a prophet in the Old Testament of the Bible and the book he wrote is FILLED with prophetic words from God. The bulk of the prophecy speaks about judgement and punishment to come on the nation of Israel. Israel gave into worshiping false gods and idols, there was no care for the orphans or the widows, they sought help from kings who worshiped false gods, than from the God who saved them from trouble so many times before, and a multitude of other sins. God pleaded with them in Isaiah 1 saying: 

Wash yourselves and be clean! Get your sins out of my sight. Give up your evil ways. Learn to do good. Seek justice. Help the oppressed. Defend the cause of the orphans. Fight for the rights of widows. Come now, let's settle this, says the Lord. Though your sins are like scarlet, I will make them as white as snow. Though they are red like crimson, I will make them as white as wool. If only you obey me, you will have plenty to eat.  But if you turn away and refuse to listen, you will be devoured by the sword of your enemies. (Isaiah 1:16-20)  

Many people skim the Old Testament and only point out the judgement hand of God, but they don't take the time to READ all the pleading God did with His people. He warned, begged, and cried for them to repent and turn back to Him. God so desperately desired for His creation to live righteously in the love He designed for them to live in (just like He does with us today). However, as we read through Isaiah we see the Lords requests were brutally ignored and the rampage of sin and evil continued (Isaiah 9:9-13). God is HOLY and RIGHTEOUS and cares more about the eternity of our souls than our comfort. If that means sending judgement and affliction to interrupt the deadly patterns of sin, so that humility and repentance will evolve, then that's what He'll do. In the book of Isaiah, that's what we see happening. 

However, in the midst of all the gloomy punishment that was to come, God still sent promises of hope. Israel was in no way deserving of these promises, but that was the grace of God. He would allow their enemies to win in war against them, but only TEMPORARILY. There will be a time where God will step in and cut off the hand of the enemy and devour him! In Isaiah 35 God gives a whole promise of restoration to the nation of Israel. 

Yes there will be an abundance of flowers and singing and joy! The deserts will become as green as the mountains of Lebanon, as lovely as Mount Carmel or the plain of Sharon. There the Lord will display his glory, the splendor of our God. With this news strengthen those who have tired hands, and encourage those who have weak knees. Say to those with fearful hearts "Be strong and do not fear for your God is coming to destroy your enemies. HE IS COMING TO SAVE YOU. 

Some say 2020 has been a judgement of God in response to America's sin, some say it's all attacks from the devil. I don't know for sure what it is, could be a mix of both, but what I do know is God see we are TIRED and WEAK just like those in Israel. In response Israel, He gave a promise that He will restore and to not fear because He WILL destroy the enemy and He IS coming to save. This promise applies TODAY. too! This brought my heart gladness beloved! God's word is living! Whether it's the national health crisis, racial injustice, spiritual hardship, financial trouble, physical illness, God says HE'S COMING TO SAVE. I don't know what may be making you tired in this season, but I pray you grab hold to the hope of God that says He sees your tiredness and He's coming, beloved, He's coming. 

May your hope be in Jesus Christ,

Anreka

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Voices Hijacking Your Hope

Dear Beloved,

God will met you right where you are. You're not too far gone. The Lord isn't over you. Sometimes it can feel like you're so out of reach, or even if God could reach you ,why would He want to. Sometimes it can be hard to talk to people because they can't relate to what you're going through. But I thank the Lord Jesus Christ, THAT HE GETS IT. No one knows you more than your Creator. So, when you experience pain, the one who made every fiber of your being is feeling it right along with you. 

I was watching an interview this week and this couple was asked: What's the hardest thing about being a parent? The wife responded, "Seeing your child hurt or struggle as they grow older and there's nothing you can do about it". I don't believe that response is unique to her, in fact I've heard my own mother say similar things. If imperfect, sinful humans hurt when their children hurt, how much more would the perfect, holy God who actually created all of us in heaven? One of the places we see Jesus hurting with his creation is in John 11:35 where the verse simply says, Jesus wept. This occurred when his friend Lazarus passed away and Lazarus' sisters along with the village were deeply saddened and in mourning. Jesus related to their pain and cried with them (though he knew he was going to raise Lazarus from the dead, he still hurt as they hurt from the loss). 

The beautiful thing about God is that, unlike us humans that are unable to do anything about the pain of our children, God can feel what we're going through AND do something about it. One of the greatest things God does is MEET US WHERE WE ARE. We see this in John 8:1-11 when Mary Magdalene was brought to the town square to be humiliated concerning her sin of adultery with a married man. Jesus could've waived his finger at her and pointed out her sin like everyone else, but instead he knelt down to the ground and wrote something in the dirt. She felt low in spirit, so he went lower in physical position. Instead of scolding Mary and calling out her faults, Jesus address her accusers. He called out the voices that were shouting "Die, adulterer!", he silenced them and overcame them with the power of his word. When the accusers were gone, Jesus looked Mary in the eye and said "I don't condemn you, now go and sin no more". 

Jesus did something about the pain and shame Mary was in. He used the power of his word to shut down the voices of condemnation and then set her free through his forgiveness and love. Many times our hope can be hi-jacked because the voices are speaking condemnation and death over us. Whether it's the voices of other people or in our own heads, the enemy will use which means he can to get his words of death and depression into our minds. However, beloved, Mary is just one example of many in the Bible where people were counted out, overlooked, and thrown away, but GOD SAW THEM. God met them right where they were. God SAW ME and still does and meets me right where I am. Even in times where I'd be over me, God says nope, "I'm coming to your level and I'm meeting you RIGHT WHERE YOU ARE". You are no exception. May you use this story and scripture in John 8:1-11 to shutdown the voices the devil is using to hijack your hope in this season and know that God is not condemning you, but He's coming down to your level and to your situation ready to love you and free you through forgiveness. 

May your hope be in Jesus Christ,

Anreka

Tell me how this Hope Letter helped you in the comments below!

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God Promises Safety

Dear Beloved,

I don't know where your mind is right now, but God keeps placing this Bible chapter on my heart, Isaiah 11. In the midst of any mental, emotional, or spiritual turmoil you may be experiencing, God uses this chapter to paint one of the most beautiful pictures of safety I've ever read. For me in this hour, there is a great well of hope I can draw from God's promise of safety. Life can be hard with the enemy consistently threatening our safety. Whether it be the safety of our health, our hearts, our minds, or our lives all together. As long as there is God's light pursuing to love us, there is the darkness of the enemy seeking to drain us of hope and keep us blind. 

It's only by God's GRACE does He allow us to experience His light and opens our eyes to His great hope. Maybe you've had a heavy week with recent events in the news, dealing with your health, balancing life situations, wherever your heart is reading this letter, I pray God's grace over you. I pray the Lord will grace you to open your heart to His light and open your eyes to the hope in His word. Proverbs 18:10 says The name of the Lord is a strong tower and the righteous run into it and are safe. I pray through the grace of God, that His very name and His word which is greater than His name will be a place of refuge for you as you read and safety will be your portion. 

In Isaiah 11 God explains what it will be like when Jesus returns to the earth: 

In that day the wolf and the lamb will live together; the leopard and the goat 

will be at peace. Calves and sheep will be safe among lions, and a little child 

will lead them all...Babies will crawl safely among poisonous snakes.

Yeas, a little child will put its hand in a nest of deadly snakes

an pull it out unharmed. Nothing will hurt or destroy

in all my holy mountain. And as the waters fill the sea, 

so the earth will be filled with people who know the Lord.

(Isaiah 11:6-9)

When God says NOTHING will hurt or destroy, He means NOTHING. No disease, no wickedness of me, nor devil in hell can cause hurt or destruction to those who will be in Christ Jesus. This is the future that God promises His people. Pain will be eradicated from the earth when Christ returns and ALL things will be healed. Nothing can bring harm, not even animals. God promises an eternal peace and an eternal hope in the safety of His power and His plan. Turmoil may be all around you now beloved, but remember this life is temporary. Hold true to what is eternal. Enter the safety of God's presence TODAY by filling your mind with worship music and thanking God for the eternal peace to come. God is not a man that He should lie. Thank you Lord for your truth and thank you for your safety. We place our hearts, minds, and bodies in your hands, in Jesus name, amen. 

May your hope be in Jesus Christ,

Anreka

Tell me how this Hope Letter helped you in the comments below!

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Feeling Like You're About To Drown?

You've been feeling like you're in the midst of one storm with herpes and now the world is hit another evil illness, covid-19. You may be in prayer now against two ailments or maybe you're dealing with losing your job because of the pandemic. Then on top of losing your job, you're wondering how you're going to pay the bills, feed the kids, SURVIVE? It's like one storm after another. How much can one person take?

I remember when I was diagnosed with herpes in 2011, within one second my entire life changed and I faced what felt like the greatest storm of my life. I lost a portion of my health, my love at the time, my connection with others (because I couldn't bring myself to tell anyone), and my sight of the future. It was actually multiple storms in one. Then, a month and half later, my sin caught up with me again and I got into major legal trouble and had a court date on my hands. One tsunami after another, how was this happening TO ME?? I literally felt like I was drowning. Maybe that's how you're feeling right now. Your life is taking one hit after another and you're at the point of giving up.

I want to encourage you with a scripture I came across in Psalm 93:2-4:

Your (God's) throne is established from old, you are everlasting. The floods have lifted up their voice; the floods lift up their waves. The LORD ON HIGH IS MIGHTIER than the noise of many waves, yea than the mighty waves of the sea.

In this scripture we have David reflecting on when he felt like he was drowning. The floods of life lifted up their voice (the voice sounds like worry, fear, anxiety, discouragement, disappointment, depression, hopelessness) and the floods lifted up their waves (circumstance after circumstance, bad news after bad news, wave after wave). He was surrounded by water, the waves were much stronger than him and the current was too much for him to swim through. The voices of the floods made it difficult to hear the voice of God, but he remembered THE LORD ON HIGH IS MIGHTIER than the noise of many waves! In the midst of his flood, he may not have been able to feel God or even hear God, but he KNEW God and recalled on what He KNEW to be His truth over the floods. His KNOWLEDGE of God being MIGHTIER became his life jacket! 

God IS NOT A FEELING. John 4:24 says, God is a SPIRIT: and they that worship him must worship him in SPIRIT and in TRUTH. We don't worship or believe God through feeling, not even through hearing, but by yielding our spirits to HIS TRUTH. If we know His truth that alone is enough to keep us a float above the waves. That is enough to save us. That is enough to stop us from drowning. Right now God's truth is that HE IS MIGHTIER than herpes, corona, job loss, financial strain, and whatever other storm is trying to take you over. Repeat this scripture everyday if you have to, and soon this truth will be louder than the noises of the waves and your faith will be mightier than the height of the waves. 

God's word is your life jacket, in Jesus you will not drown!

May your hope be in Jesus Christ,


Anreka

Tell me how this Hope Letter helped you in the comments below!

Are you struggling to maintain HOPE? Herpes To Hope Lockscreens will help you see daily reminders of God's hope and help you when those negative thoughts come! Get your Hope Lockscreen TODAY! Click Below!

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Hope During World Crisis

As many of you are aware the world is facing a major health crisis, the coronavirus. Some of you may not have been impacted and some of you may whether you're battling the ailment or know someone who is. Wherever you fall in this, I come writing this letter hearing and feeling the world's cry for HOPE.

The greatest way I know to access hope is through PRAYER! Let's storm heaven together! Access the prayer BELOW! Whether you believe or not, reciting the words have POWER and the more of us that pray it, the more power it will have in releasing hope into the world. After you pray it, type AMEN in the comments of this Hope Letter!

Click Here To Pray!

May your hope be in Jesus Christ,

Anreka

Remember to type AMEN in the comments after you pray!

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