Hope for Salvation – 2 Peter 3:9
The Lord is not slow about His promise, as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing for any to perish but for all to come to repentance.
Never give up; never lose hope. Regardless of how long you have prayed for the salvation of a loved one, continue with your faithful prayers. Although every visible sign defies hope that the ones for whom you are praying will come to know and love Christ, continue out of your love for them to hope for the Lord’s miraculous intervention on their behalf.[1] For the Lord is eminently qualified to transform a heart of stone and replace it with a heart of flesh,[2] and our own salvation testifies to us of the unfathomable mercy He has for His children.
I once worked with a woman whom I looked upon with a mixture of awe, trepidation, and pity. She was bold and assertive, wielded her authority as a high-level manager with confidence, made a lot of money, wore expensive clothes, traveled to exotic places, and showed no interest in Christianity. As a Christian entering the corporate world, I could not envision myself witnessing to her about the Lord. She wore her worldliness with such abandon that of all the people I knew, she was the most unlikely to become a Christian. Imagine my shock when years later, after she had moved on to another company into a more powerful, higher-paying job, I learned that she, having accepted Christ, had been adopted into the family of God. I never forgot her, for knowing that the person I least expected to accept the Good News of salvation through Jesus Christ had become a believer encourages me to persevere in my prayers for those I so fervently desire to accept the gift of eternal life offered by our Lord and Savior.
When it seems like an eternity has passed since you started
praying for the salvation of one dear to your heart, be of good courage, and
refuse to become dispirited. Place your
trust in God, and continue to petition Him for the miraculous spiritual rebirth
of those you long to join you as brothers and sisters in the Lord.[3] Hope on in Christ though all seems lost,
trusting in the One who is willing and able, according to His immeasurable
abundance, to do beyond what we could ask or think.[4]
Rejoice in knowing that the seeds of
life you sow in tears will take root, bringing shouts of joy as they grow into
trees of faith, for our faithful Lord will not tarry beyond the appointed time.[5]
The riverbed is cracked and dried
The land is parched and weary
Their souls were never satisfied
Their lives were hard and dreary
They could not see the lush, rich land
Watered by the streams
That cut across the desert sand
To bring alive their dreams
Until the trusted servant brought
The glorious Good News
That Jesus was the hope they sought
And they had but to choose
To drink the living waters
So they’d never thirst again
To become God’s sons and daughters
And know Jesus as their friend
In gratitude and joy they raised
To God and God alone
Anthems of worship, songs of praise
With the faithful who had sown
The seeds of life and liberty
In the parched and weary land
So precious souls might be set free
From the blazing desert sand
[1] 1 Corinthians 13:7
[2] Ezekiel 36:26
[3] Psalm 62:8
[4] Ephesians 3:20
[5] Psalm 126:5-6
