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I am with you and will watch over you wherever you go, and I will bring you back to this land. I will not leave you until I have done what I have promised you (Genesis 28:15).

Let\u2019s return once more to this word to Jacob -- a part of God\u2019s promise to him as he fled his brother\u2019s wrath.

I\u2019ve often wondered how African slaves sold on the American auction block kept hope alive. Likewise, how did those who resisted the Nazi\u2019s maintain their resolve to hide Jewish folks, even as their own loved ones were carted off to concentration camps? Or how do folks who have suffered abuse for years and years find the resolve to live after finding freedom?

I\u2019m sure the answers are varied and complex. We may catch a glimpse in some of the songs left us from African American Christians. The lyrics of \u201cSwing Low Sweet Chariot\u201d harken back to this promise of God to Jacob while in the same beat stretching forward to the new heaven and new earth. Such hope is rooted in God\u2019s promise, \u201cI have better things in store for you.\u201d

Thus, there is good reason for all of us to ponder these great promises tucked into the pages of the Bible. And looking at the context of this promise offers us enormous hope. Remember that Jacob is running for his life. His brother is angry with him. And the anger is justified. Jacob has connived and tricked his brother out of the family birthright, blessing and inheritance that belonged to the oldest son.

But at the heart of this deception is a lack of faith in God. Rebekah, Jacob\u2019s mother, had learned, even before her twins were born, that the older would serve the younger. Faith would have waited and watched as God fulfilled his promise. She knew the story of her husband, Isaac, born to the aged Sarah. But she did not watch and wait. Instead, she deceived her husband and older son.

Despite this lack of faith in God\u2019s ability to bring about what he has promised, God makes a new promise to Jacob: \u201cyou are running away, but I will bring you home\u201d. And our Lord does it. This theme of God fulfilling his promise to his doubting people continues throughout the Bible. When the people of Israel reach the promised land, they don\u2019t believe that God could bring them in. They are banished to the wilderness, even as God promises to bring their children in.

Later, when Israel refuses to worship God, he threatens to remove them from the land. They don\u2019t take him seriously; they keep sinning. Even as God sends his people into exile, he promises to bring them back. He will resettle them in the promised land. He had promised Abraham that this land would belong to his children forever. He will keep his promise.

What does all this have to do with Christians today? Well, at least two things. First, it points towards Jesus on the cross. Paul is emphatic, that Christ died for us while we were still sinners, enemies, even, of God. When we read about Israel, we read our own stories. We are saved by grace, nothing else. Further, Matthew tells us that even while some of his disciples still doubted, Jesus sent them out to be his witnesses (Matthew 28:16-20). God does not need people who have it altogether. Its flawed and doubting folks that are saved and sent. That\u2019s good news for all of us.

Secondly, the promise of the land still stands: a renewed earth. We have something to look forward to. We believe that there is life after death. While the details might be sketchy, one thing is clear, the renewed earth will be vastly superior to this one. And God will be with us all the way from here to there.

So, whether its our own lack of holiness or faith, or the bleak circumstance of our lives, these promises of God penetrate our despair and offer us hope. These promises deserve celebration. Live with joy today as you consider the hope we have in God. That hope fueled the songs of African slaves in the Americas. It\u2019s a hope that belongs to all Christians. It\u2019s a hope that we need today.

As you journey, go with the blessing of God:

May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit (Romans 15:13).