What is your definition of ‘hope’?

For me, I have to go back to the Word of God and what Scripture says. Looking at Gd’s Word, I believe that the right definition of ‘hope’ is ‘a joyful expectation of something good’.

Picture for a minute the story of blind Bartimaeus (Mark 10). He was sitting in the dust, in complete darkness, and all of a sudden. he could hear all this noise. I imagine he said ‘Hey guys, what’s going on? What’s happening?’ The people nearby told him that Jesus was passing by, and suddenly Bartimaeus was filled with hope. He has this joyful expectation that something good was going to happen for him, and he was so eager to get it that he started to shout his head off in order to attract Jesus’ attention.

In another story, a sick woman was so desperate for her breakthrough that she left the house and pushed through crowds just to touch the hem of Jesus’ garments. She should not have even left the house, but she wanted her breakthrough so badly and she was ready to do what she had to do to get it.

These people were not just ‘wishing’. A wish is really just a lucky draw. It might happen, it might not happen. But ‘hope’ (by the Scripture’s definition) led these people to have a joyful expectation. The anticipation of what might happen became almost visual, tangible. They knew, that they knew, that they KNEW that they only needed to call out or touch him. They knew that if they had a touch from the king, their situation would be changed.

Even later in the New Testament, when Paul is shipwrecked and facing prison, he was shouting ‘We are going to be ok. We are in the middle of the wreckage, but I am joyfully anticipating that we ARE going to make it.’

In my own life, I know this to be true too. Even after the death of our son Jamie, though our world was falling apart and everything was in chaos, there was still this sense of peace: this hope that though we could not see it yet, God would bring something good out of our sorrow.

Please don’t get me wrong. We do not rejoice in such terrible suffering, but we can know that somehow God will bring good out of it. Real hope is not a ‘wish’; it is a deep down expectation and anticipation that good will come from whatever situations we may face.

Worldly hope is just a wish. Godly, Biblical hope is what carries you through. I believe that when we look to God’s Word for our definition of hope, suddenly so many stories in the Bible make sense. We are also able to view our situations and circumstances differently. We are able to see them not through a worldly system of ‘wishing’ that they will improve but with a Godly anticipation and expectation that sooner or later, good will come.

If you are in need of hope today, can I encourage you to not just ‘wish’ but instead ask God to fill you with expectancy of what He can do. When you have that real, God-inspired hope, your perspective will change.

On Monday evening, while on holiday with my family in France, my heart sank as I saw the images of the Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris go up in flames. This beautiful 850-year-old cathedral was being destroyed on television screens right in front of our eyes as firefighters tried to quickly save whatever was left.

The following morning, we were greeted with a new sight. The cathedral was still smouldering in places, but there were pictures on social media of the interior of the building. There, among the charred ruins, was a cross standing proudly above all the wreckage the blaze had left. This cross, this cross of Jesus, was shining brightly in the darkness, intact, and it reminded us that Jesus not only died on the cross, but he rose again.

What a powerful symbol of hope in the middle of such devastation.

As I thought about it, it reminded me that in a world ravaged by the blaze of sin, in a world devastated by suffering, uncertainty, and injustice, the cross still stands firm and intact. But it is not the cross of Jesus that can save us. That is just a symbol. It is the Jesus of the cross who has the power to bring hope in the middle of hopelessness, to bring healing where there is suffering and pain.

Over 2000 years ago, Jesus went to the cross willingly to die for all of humanity, and the message of the cross is just as relevant today as it was then.

On Good Friday, we mark this important and life-changing event. For some, this day will be a quiet and reflective day, and for others, as they remember all that Jesus has done for them, it will be a day of thankful rejoicing. If you do not yet know the hope and healing that a relationship with Jesus can bring, I would love to point you back to the Bible, to God’s Word, to John 3:16, which explains what happened that day.

‘For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life’ (John 3:16).

As we spend this weekend remembering the death and the resurrection of Jesus, may you be reminded that no matter what we face, in Jesus there is always hope.

* Photo credit: (Image by Philippe Wojazer @Reuters)

I first heard about the UCB Word for Today in the late 1990s. We were receiving copies of the devotional at church, and I immediately loved it. Reading it affected me a great deal, and I would regularly cut out readings and fax them to friends. I would even pray about it and ask who God wanted me to send the cuttings to. I could see how God was using it to impact many people’s lives, and I would often be asked ‘How can I get a copy?’ 

A few years later, I was invited to UCB to share my testimony on UCB Radio, and it was there that I also met UCB’s Founder, Ian Mackie. I did not know what was to come!

Sometime later, my wife Jackie and I were invited again to UCB, but this time to meet with the UCB Board of Trustees. That was the first time I met the author of the Word For Today, Bob Gass. At the time, Bob was visiting and spending some time sharing his heart with the Board. I really enjoyed meeting him. He struck me immediately as a man who was soaked in the Word of God. I remember thinking that he was such a likeable guy; he really listened to what everyone in the room was saying, and in all conversations, he always drove us back to the Scriptures. It was in this meeting that (in a complete surprise to me) I was actually invited to join the UCB Board. That was the beginning of my journey with UCB and also my friendship with Bob Gass.

This year, we celebrate 25 years of the UCB Word For Today, and in the 12 years I have been at UCB, I could tell you countless stories of the impact that the devotional has had. Bob has a unique style and a rare gift of taking the Word of God and applying it to everyday life. He writes it in such a way – with the support of a great team – that it appeals to those who don’t know God (so that it acts as an ‘appetiser’), and it also helps more mature believers go deeper in their faith (so that it acts as a ‘vitamim’, especially in challenging times).   

Over the years, as I have got to know Bob and his wife, Debby, I have been struck by their obedience to God’s calling. In the early days, Bob was an itinerant preacher and also had a TV show in the US, but he did not think of himself as a writer. However, on his wedding day in 1991, he and Debby were given a prophecy and were told that Bob’s writing would reach more people than his preaching ever would. As Bob himself says, he was getting married that day and had his mind on other things. But Debby wrote the prophecy down, and they did not forget it. Sometime later, the Word for Today became a written reality, and from a small print run of 3,500 copies here in the UK, it now has a global reach through print and digital platforms of over 7.6 million per quarter at the end of 2018. In the UK alone, we send it (in print copy alone) to over 400,000 people every quarter. 

Bob’s heart has always been that the readers would get deeper into the Word of God. It has never been about ‘him’ or his ministry, but about seeing lives changed for good by the power of God’s Word. Our ministry partnership over the years has gone from strength to strength, and Bob continues to be a great encouragement to all we do here at UCB. Bob and I have spent hours in my office and on the phone, sharing (and debating!) our thoughts on areas of God’s Word, thinking about new ways to reach people with the truth of Scripture. What a privilege for UCB to partner with such an amazing resource.     

This year, as we celebrate the 25th anniversary of the Word for Today, we are excited about the future and the ways that God will continue to speak into lives through this devotional. We continue to receive story after story from people whose lives have been ‘changed for good by the power of God’s Word’. We are so thankful for our wonderful partnership with Bob and the team. 

P.S. If you don’t yet receive the UCB Word for Today, we can send you a copy (free of charge) each quarter. You can sign up at ucb.co.uk/signup

I once read a story about some grandparents who were looking for a gift for their granddaughter. There are many different versions of the story told on the internet, but this is one of my favourite versions…

Searching for a gift for their granddaughter, some grandparents walked into a gift shop and spotted on a shelf a beautiful, artistic vase.  

‘Look at this lovely piece of work,’ the grandmother said to her husband.
The grandfather picked it up and said ‘You’re right! This is one of the most beautiful vases I have ever seen.’

At that point, to their surprise, the vase started to speak, and it said to the couple ‘Thank you for the compliment. But I wasn’t always beautiful.’

And the grandfather says ‘What do you mean you weren’t always beautiful?’

‘Well,’ said the vase, ‘once I was just an ugly, soggy lump of clay. But one day a man with dirty, wet hands threw me onto a wheel. Then he started turning me around and around until I got so dizzy I couldn’t see straight. “Stop! Stop!” I cried. But the man with the wet hands said, ‘Not yet.”‘

‘Then he started to poke me and punch me until I hurt all over. “Stop! Stop!” I cried. But the man said “Not yet.”‘

‘Each time I thought he was finished, he would crumble and roll me up and begin to poke and punch me again.’

‘Finally he did stop. But then he did something much worse: he put me into a furnace. It got hotter and hotter until I couldn’t stand it. “Stop! Stop!” I cried. But the man said “Not yet.”‘

‘Finally when I thought I was going to burn up, the man took me out of the furnace. Then some lady began to paint me and the fumes got so bad they made me feel sick.’

‘Stop! Stop!’ I cried.

‘Not yet,’ said the lady.

‘Finally she did stop.’

‘But then she gave me back to the man, and he put me back into that awful furnace. This time it was hotter than before.’

‘Stop! Stop!’ I cried. But the man said ‘Not yet.’

‘Finally he took me out of the furnace and let me cool.’

‘When I was completely cool, a lady put me on this shelf next to this mirror, and when I looked at the mirror I could not believe what I saw. I was no longer ugly, soggy and dirty. I was beautiful, firm, and clean.’

‘It was then that I realised that without all of that pain, I would still be the ugly, soggy lump of wet clay.’

When I read this story, I was so moved, and it reminded me very much of the story of the potter which is found in Jeremiah 18. In this chapter, the Lord reminds Jeremiah that the people are in His hands and despite their unfaithfulness, He will not forget them.

There is so much we can learn from the picture of God as a potter, shaping our lives according to His amazing plan. Recently I shared these thoughts with some of our UCB team leaders, and I want to share them with you too.

God has a plan

Firstly, in all circumstances of life, remember that God had the picture of what your life would look like in His mind before you set off. Before the clay was even pulled out of the ground, God had a design in mind for not only your life but also for the people you will be working with in His plan and purpose.

God watches over us

No matter what we go through, our Heavenly Father keeps His eye upon us every step of the way and in each stage of the process. There will be times in all of our lives where we do not feel Him near, and we may even wonder if God has forgotten us, but that is not true. He is always faithful to His plans and promises, and that includes His plans for your life.

There is a process

To become who God wants us to be, there is a process that must take place. Just as with the process of making a beautiful vase, first of all, the clay has to be prepared and has to be pressed down to get the air out, even before it gets on the wheel.

Secondly, when the clay is first placed on the wheel, it is an undefined blob. It looks nothing like the vision the potter has for what it will become. Being ‘on the wheel’ is a painful process as we are spinned through all the busyness and patterns and cycles of life. But each spin is necessary for shaping us, defining us, moulding us into the shape the potter has in mind.

After the clay is spun, it’s placed in the furnace, not to hurt or crack it but to make sure it is fit for purpose! I am sure we can all testify to life being like a furnace sometimes – grief, loss, betrayal, rejection – all part of the furnace of life. But it is a key part of the Potter’s purpose.

And when we are finally taken out of the furnace and left on a shelf to cool, we might think that God had finished with us. But this is not the time to get complacent! In fact, this is a crucial time where it’s important to remain focused and not give in to temptations. This is ‘God’s waiting room’ where we wait to see what He will make of us!

When the pottery is ready – when we have been tested and found to be secure and fit for purpose – this is when God is able to paint a beautiful design with our lives. But as much as we would love to think that testing and trials are over, this is not the case!

In fact, in the next step – the glazing process – the fire might be even hotter! It does not sound like a very good process, does it? And yet, when our lives are in the Potter’s hands, it is the safest place in the world to be. He stamps us with His seal of ownership. He says ‘you are mine’ and ‘though you walk through the fire, I will be with you.’

As believers, we belong to the Potter.

And whatever we go through, whatever part of the process we are in, we can be assured of one thing: He has a plan for us, our lives, our world.

To me, that is the greatest comfort of all.

At the end of each year, I always take time to think and pray about the year that has just passed and ask God for a word for the year ahead.

In November, in preparation for 2019, I was studying the story of the widow and the jars of oil (found in 2 Kings 4), and I found so much in the story that encouraged me. I would like to share some of these thoughts, but I want to first give you an overview of UCB’s ministry from 2018.

It is fair to say that 2018 was an unprecedented year, and although we do not publicise everything that happens, it followed a very difficult financial year in 2017. As we moved into 2018, I felt God was saying that if we were willing to make a choice and trust Him, He would lead us into unexpected favour. After a year of great uncertainty in 2018, we began to see the outpouring of unexpected favour and blessing. I see ‘unprecedented favour’ as something we could not have achieved by ourselves, but something that must surely have only come from God.  We saw this favour in several areas, but there were 3 specific areas that we want to give thanks and praise for.

In 2018, we unexpectedly had a phone call from our DAB providers, letting us know it would be possible to increase the reach of UCB 2 up to 4 million more people. This was something that had never been discussed before and in human terms, certainly did not seem possible, and yet we were being offered the opportunity to reach so many more people. I saw this very much as a ‘tick from God’. It was not something we could have done ourselves… it was the favour of God.

Secondly, we saw God move in a very complex legal situation that we have been involved in for over 10 years.  Again, although we had sought to deal with the situation with integrity and honesty, fixing it was beyond our control. And yet, somehow, God moved, and the whole situation was resolved.

And then in 2018, we also began to see a change in our finances. 2017 was a very tough financial year, but in 2018, our heart was to see this dramatically change.

Here is what happened! In 30 years of UCB’s history, there has only been 1 year where the organisation has been totally debt free, and our heart was that this would happen again. We not only had a positive financial year, but we were able to pay off a long-standing debt.

God turned up in a miraculous way to lead us into 2019 in a way we could absolutely never have imagined.

So, as UCB moves ahead into 2019, what does the year ahead look like for us?

Well, as I studied the story of the widow and the miracle of the jars in oil, I felt God highlight some specific areas which I believe are to be UCB’s focus for 2019. Perhaps you can draw something from this for your own life too?

2 Kings 4 tells us that a widow went to the prophet Elisha, for she had lost everything and now the creditors were threatening to take her sons away. She was nearly destitute, and so she turned in anguish to the prophet, looking for help. Elisha first asked her what she had at home. Was there something she could sell? But the widow had nothing. As I read this, I was struck by the widow’s perspective. She was focused completely on what she had lost and what she was about to lose. Oh how the enemy wants us to focus on the negative so that we cannot see or recognise the breakthrough that God wants us to experience.

This for me is one of the reasons why Christian media is so important. We live in a world where national media often focuses on the negative and depressing news that is around us. But Christian media, such as ourselves, Premiere, and many others who are engaged in this work around the world, exists to provide a powerful and positive influence in people’s lives.

My prayer for us as an organisation (and for you too) is that in 2019, we will learn to focus fully on what we HAVE and not on what we have not.

Also in this story is the idea of capacity. Elisha instructs the widow to ask her neighbours to gather up as many empty vessels as they could find. God wants to give us more than what we believe is possible, but all too often our capacity for receiving is diminished. We do not have enough empty vessels! But I believe our capacity will determine the flow, and it is important to think big. No, we don’t want to think unwisely or ask God for blessing so that we can use it selfishly, but we DO want to be ready to have all that he is willing and able to give.

So, let’s think bigger… let’s not be unwise but at the same time, let’s think BIG about what God can do.

You have within you the fullness of the Godhead; the same power that raised Christ from the dead lives in US. So, as we get 2019 off to a fresh start, let us be expectant, focus on what we have (not on what we don’t), and be ready for God to do something bigger than we could have ever imagined!

From myself and the UCB team… have a blessed 2019!

My young granddaughter has discovered the wonder of Christmas. We talk to her on Facetime, and she shows us the Christmas tree, and then on another day, she shows us her Christmas jumper or Christmas presents she has received.

Through her excitement, our family is re-discovering the wonder of Christmas too.

Wonder is literally ‘the feeling of amazement, of being aware of something remarkable happening around you.’  But perhaps, in all the noise and excitement of the Christmas season, you have lost some of the wonder of what Christmas is really all about? 

At this time of year, there will be two camps of people: those who will be celebrating and who will be excited at all that is to come; and those who may be feeling sad, unhappy, and not really enjoying the journey.

But the good news is that no matter what our circumstances or feelings are, we CAN still enjoy the wonder of this season (just like my granddaughter) if we choose to focus on the really important, wondrous things that God has given us.

The 7 wonders of Christmas

 1.  We have been given the wonder of SALVATION. Can you imagine? The Creator of the universe left all glory to become flesh – to become one of us. He chose to be constrained into a physical body, with one goal and purpose: to fulfil God’s plan for mankind. We hear the story so often that it can be easy to take it for granted. But let’s focus on the beautiful wonder of salvation this Christmas time.

2.  Mary encountered the favour of God, and through her obedience, we too now have ultimate access to the wonder of FAVOUR. No longer is favour a restricted gift for just a few; it is now available to all. You know, other religions often teach that people have to do something in order to get the favour and blessing of God. But as believers in Jesus, all we have to do is accept it. It is a free gift that is available to all who believe.

3.   Let’s also not forget the wonder of God’s blessings. Let’s be grateful for every thing we have and not take our blessings for granted. He blesses us with so many gifts – forgiveness of sins, healing, and so much more. Although your circumstances might look difficult, let’s remember to look at the blessings God has given us and not look at what we don’t have or what we might have lost.

4.  We also have the wonder of God’s leading and direction. Can you imagine what Joseph went through? He was told that his fiancée was pregnant, and in that time and culture, that was almost unthinkable. Despite the confusion and fear he must have felt, he was also able to recognise the voice of God. Sometimes in the noise around us, we can lose the ‘wonder of the whisper’. Joseph heard the whisper of God in a dream, which gave him direction and clarity. And we too can have the wonder of direction from God if we pause and choose to listen.

5.   We also have the wonder of joy. Oh yes, joy can be tarnished by the circumstances we are in, but if we look at the situation and not at the inward gift of joy, we could miss the wonder of it all. Perhaps this Christmas, there is an empty chair at your table or you have experienced loss of some kind. I know how this feels! Many years ago at our family’s first Christmas after we lost our son Jamie, I was very aware of the empty chair. But yet through it all, by focusing on what we had (and not on what we had lost), we were able to hang on to joy (even though it was tarnished by what we had lost).

6.   We were never promised a life without trouble or tribulation, but as believers, we were promised that we could have the wonder of peace. We all experience storms in our lives, but storms come and storms go. Let’s recognise the wonder of the Prince of Peace, and let’s be thankful for His enduring presence in the middle of the most difficult of circumstances. Don’t let the enemy steal from you the wonder of God’s peace!

7.   Finally, none of these wonders would be even possible if it wasn’t for the wonder of redemption. Jesus saw each of us as so priceless that he was prepared to be born in order to die for the entire world. We couldn’t pay the debt we owed ourselves, and so God bought us and redeemed us so that He could show us His perfect plan. What a wonder – the perfect gift of redemption.

As Christmas approaches, some of you will be feeling sad and sorrowful, but can I encourage you today to focus on the true wonders of Christmas? These are all the things I have listed above, and you could probably list some of your own too!

Whatever you are going through, whatever season you are in, don’t let the enemy steal from you the true wonders of Christmas.