I am just a couple of weeks away from the Hot Rod Power Tour. These days I’m not thinking about packing my suitcase, but how I can pack a little more horsepower under the hood of my Chevy. Trips to the speed shop, appointments with mechanics, and lots of polishing have been the order of the day. I’m becoming seriously OCD! Yesterday, I entrusted my pride and joy to our eldest son. Mind you, the car is five years old and is pushing 130,000 miles on the odometer. Daniel has been driving for thirteen years, but I treated him like he was sixteen and taking the car out for the first time: “Go slowly over bumps. Be careful where you park. I just lowered it, make sure you back in.”
You’re probably thinking, “What’s Tommy’s problem?” It’s easy: my fear of nicks, scratches, and dents! Then I read Paul’s words and I am reminded that a “perfect” car is a futile hope.
Command those who are rich in the present world not to be arrogant nor to put their hope in wealth, which is so uncertain, but to put their hope in God, who richly provides us everything for our enjoyment. (1 Timothy 6:17 NIV)
Paul was right! Money and the stuff it buys are so uncertain. Cars get scratched, clothes get ripped, and the house needs repairs. Treasured items get lost, broken or stolen. Even great fortunes can evaporate quickly in a bad stock market.
That is why the writers of Scripture constantly urge us to place our hope in something that is very certain—God! He is called a “strong tower” (Proverbs 18:10), “our refuge” (Psalm 46:1), and the only one who will never leave us (Hebrews 13:5). God never breaks down, never loses his value, never goes out of style—and he never gives up on us. He can’t be nicked, scratched, or dented!
To hope in God is to trust him with my day-to-day affairs and my future plans. It is banking on the fact that he will provide me with all the joy, all the peace, and all the strength I need for each and every day. Hoping in God is developing a confident expectation that though “all hell breaks loose,” He will hold me together.
Today may be filled with uncertainty, but you do not have to be. Trust God!
FOCAL POINT: Look for signs of an uncertain world: repair shops, stock market slides, reports of violence and such. When you see them, take a moment to thank God that he is the only sure thing. Trust Him!