Endurance for the Journey, Featured, Hope
Stark Reality
Remember how fleeting is my life.
For what futility you have created all men!
What man can live and not see death,
or save himself from the power of the grave?
PSALM 89:47-48 (NIV)
A recurrent theme for those who suffer is a sense of futility about life. With their hopes dashed, their strength gone and their future uncertain, they begin to see life like the psalmist in verses 47 -48.
I call this perspective “stark reality.” It’s stark because it stands out in bold relief, in sharp black and white. And it’s reality because there’s no escaping from it.
Viewing our life as fleeting can change the wasteful way so many of us live. For many of us who have overcome serious adversity, this perspective helps us to live purposeful lives that give glory to God. Amazing, isn’t it, how God can use death to lead us to vibrant life!
That is why we never give up.
though our bodies are dying,
our spirits are being renewed every day.
For our present troubles are small
and won’t last very long.
Yet they produce for us a glory
that vastly outweighs them
and will last forever!
So we don’t look at the troubles
we can see now;
rather we fix our gaze
on things that cannot be seen.
For the things we see now will soon be gone,
but the things we cannot see will last forever.
2 CORINTHIANS 4:16-18 (NLT)
On the journey with you,
Jan Dravecky
