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I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened\xa0in order that you may know the hope to which he has called\xa0you, the riches\xa0of his glorious inheritance\xa0in his holy people, and his incomparably great power for us who believe.\xa0 That power is the same as the mighty strength he exerted when he raised Christ from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly realms\u2026 (Ephesians 1:18-21)

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Ephesians is one of my favourite books of the Bible.\xa0 There are a lot of soaring words as Paul falls all over himself in trying to describe the incredible hope given in Christ for us, for the church, and even for the world.

Just listen in to what he\u2019s saying here in these few short verses:

We are the children of God\u2014we belong to him\u2014and we will enjoy his inheritance as heaven and earth meet at last.\xa0 In the end, Jesus returns to dwell with his people.\xa0 It\u2019s the moment that our hope is realized as we enter our inheritance.\xa0 An inheritance that is far more than just money or stuff.\xa0 It\u2019s a secure place to belong, it\u2019s a role and a purpose that have deep meaning and fulfillment, and it\u2019s the whole, abundant, renewed creation within which to live it.\xa0 We will be co-rulers with Christ our brother over this renewed creation, our inherited home.\xa0 It\u2019s a picture of life and of hope.\xa0 Everything as it was meant to be.

The great power of God guarantees it for us who believe.\xa0 His is the power of life and the power to bring life, even out of the clutches of death.\xa0 It\u2019s the power that raised Christ from the dead, the power that has broken the power of death and that will one day put an end to death, pain, and dying altogether.\xa0 That life-giving power of God will renew our bodies and all of Creation, even as God establishes his rule over that Creation in Christ forevermore.\xa0 \xa0\xa0\xa0\xa0

But we don\u2019t always have the eyes to see that sure vision of hope.\xa0 Sometimes our days are dark, we\u2019re lonely, powerless, death seems near, resources seem scarce, our lives lack purpose.\xa0

So Paul prays for us: particularly for the eyes to see.\xa0 The eyes to catch the small glimpses of grace and of hope that flow through our days: whether a sunrise, a moment of stillness, a stranger on the street, or an opportunity to connect in a strange new way with an old friend.\xa0 All glimpses that God\u2019s life-giving power is at work still.\xa0 Glimpses that remind us we have a purpose, a home, and a place to belong that\u2019s filled with life and plenty.\xa0 A future hope to keep our eyes on that God Himself guarantees, through Christ, who even now sits on the throne.

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