"Israel, put your hope in the LORD, for with the LORD is unfailing love and with him is full redemption." Psalm 130:7
"Here we were having this little unofficial thing, and they had signs out, ‘Welcome, runners.’ I think it gave them hope. It was a wonderful thing.” said Melissa Ossana. She was one of 50 runners that participated in the Marathon and Half Marathon without a name in the far-flung town of Millinocket, Maine, thrown together by some runners who had come to support a community left devastated by the closing of a massive paper mill. This unnamed race was unique in another way too, it was absolutely free. The only requirement for the runners was that they support local businesses and contribute in some way (by bringing food to share, for example).
Gary Allen, a runner and the race director, admitted that he couldn't fix all the problems in Millinocket but said, "I can certainly brighten things for a day.” He wanted to give hope to a community that seemed to have lost all hope. In Psalm 130:7, the psalmist, wanting to offer hope himself, wrote, "Israel, put your hope in the LORD, for with the LORD is unfailing love and with him is full redemption." So confident and assured of the unchangeable love and absolution of his God, the psalmist wanted others to know the reason for his hope in the Lord, even in the darkest of circumstances.
We may not be able to fix all the problems in the world either but we can certainly brighten things for a day by sharing our reason for hope too. Wont you tell someone today about God's undying love?
Heavenly Father, thank you for giving us hope in a world that can leave us without any. May we look for ways to share that hope with others that they might be encouraged and strengthened. And, by doing so, may we brighten the day for at least one person. It's in your precious name we pray, Jesus. Amen.
Happy Running!!!
Crave - For King and Country
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