-Strength for Today- “We need an Anchor That Hold.” - Hebrews 6:19.

?

???Storms are inevitably a part of life. Sometimes?they’re?“physical,” and other times they’re “spiritual.” but neither is over until God says that they are.?It’s?times like these that we need the?“stability”?of an anchor “for the soul,” “that’s “both “sure”?and?“steadfast.”??One that’s?anchored firmly?“to the redemption of lost humanity;”?and?established?“from the promises made to Abraham, “to the ultimate victory in Jesus Christ.”?

During such times?we must “praise,” “pray,” and?“persevere.”?Because sometimes God answers our prayers by?“calming the storm.”?Then again, for reasons we?can’t?understand, He allows?“the winds to?keep on blowing.”?and in those cases?He “answers our prayers by keeping our hope alive,”?and?anchor in Jesus Christ.”?

An anchor physically is a?“heavy metal object that keeps a ship stable.?It?ensures “that the ship stays on its intended course.”?no matter?“what’s happening in the sea around it.”?In?fact,?“we need this spiritual anchor,”?down?in our souls,?“more than?we’ll?ever know,?and?here’re three reasons why:??

1. Because?“hardship will come.” One of the main factors?that’s?addressed in the entire book, of Hebrews was written?“to a group of struggling”?and?“suffering Christians”?who were?“undergoing persecution,”?Therefore, even in the face of?“hardships”?we’re?encouraged to?“continue on,” “endure,”?“persevere,”?and?“don't?give up the faith,”?though?“hardship is a present reality.”?

2. Because?“our hearts tend to drift.”??We also need an anchor for our souls because?“no matter how long we’ve been walking with Jesus, we have a tendency to drift.” If you left a ship in the middle of a body of water, no matter how calm and serene that water might seem on the surface, it will inevitably start to drift.?That’s?because even though the surface appears?“calm,”?there’re currents (sin), that’re?“constantly operating below the surface.”??And so, it is?“with the “soul.”?This is why?“we need to be anchored,”?because if?we’re?not,?we’ll?“slowly”?but?“surely”?start “drifting away.”?

3. Because?“we’re too easily pleased.”?So,?“what things”?can cause that drift??Manly?“the love of?money,” or?“the chasing of some worldly ambition.”?Any time?we’re?pleased with the promises of the world, and not the assurance of God, nor the promise of what is and?what’s?to come, then?we’ll?settle for something less.?

So, we need to?“stop”?and?“reflect,”?not just because of?what's?being said, but the?manner in which?it’s?being said, and that is,?“We have this hope as an anchor for the soul, firm and secure,” -?Hebrews 6:19.?Our soul has been anchored in the Lord. When Christ Jesus?“died,”?and was?“buried,”?and?“rose from the grave,”?He “cast an anchor into heaven,” and will one day?“draw us up there to be with Him.”?But now,?“as we’re in the tides of this life,”?with so many things?“working against our faith,”?as “we endure the?stormy waves of this life,” that could “destroy our faith,” but even if “the?wind keeps on blowing,” because of faith in Christ Jesus.?We can?“say, because we know,?“that we know;” “our soul has been?anchored in the Lord!”?

author: Plez Lovelady, Jr., PhD

?

?