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In all this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials. These have come so that the proven genuineness of your faith\u2014of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire\u2014may result in praise, glory, and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed (1 Peter 1:6-7).

In our day, it is difficult to gaze into the future. Destructive weather patterns, inflation, political polarization, and corrupt church leaders and politicians give us little hope for a brighter tomorrow. It is easy to give in to despair. Yet, Christians remain people of hope. As the \u201cContemporary Testimony, Our World belongs to God\u201d, says, \u201cGod is present in our world by his Word and Spirit. The faithfulness of our great Provider gives sense to our days and hope to our years. The future is secure, for our world belongs to God\u201d (#13, 1978).

Even though, through Christ, we are children of God, none of us can imagine how wonderful our future will be. It will be more magnificent than any of us can imagine since our minds are fixed in this reality. Certainly, it will not be a boring place. There will be an incredible variety of things for us to do and discover. One thing is certain, we will do everything for the glory of God. Everything we do will give him praise.

We should spend time dreaming about this future to fill our hearts with hope. To dream about it, and be filled with hope for it, we must first believe it. The Bible speaks repeatedly about the certainty of this future. Here is something that is more certain than the tax bill.

We must believe that we are headed towards this future. It is guaranteed. Why must this be firmly fixed as part of our faith? Because this hope is frequently given in the context of our suffering for the gospel. Recently, we reflected on Romans 8:17; today 1 Peter 1:6,7. In both passages the apostles tell us about the certainty of our future. They also warn us that the way to that future is not an easy one.

This does not make for good preaching or a morning inspirational. Christianity is not easy. The New Testament has frequent warnings that following Jesus Christ is costly. Did you count the cost before you threw in your lot with Him? In our panic to keep church pews filled with warm bodies, we often neglect to consider the cost of following Jesus.

So how have you suffered for the gospel? For most of us, this is probably a difficult question to answer. We may have given some money and some of our time. This is good. But have we suffered? What did it cost us? Did it mean that we were not able to afford the larger house or car? Did it mean we couldn\u2019t go on the vacation we were dreaming of? Have we walked with some of the poorest? Have we persevered in prayer for an unbelieving friend until God answered us? Can we really say that we have suffered for the gospel? Has following Jesus cost us?

Is suffering so important? Well, Peter says that suffering refines our faith. It strengthens our faith; gets rid of its shallowness. Our faith is of greater worth than gold...now wait a minute. There is something to ponder: our faith is worth more than gold. Do you consider your faith that valuable? God does! He is not content when our faith is small and weak. He wants our faith robust and strong. Suffering often brings that about. Yet, we run away from it. We panic and declare that life is unfair.

God, on the other hand, says, \u201cCome here. Walk with me. Let me show you that I can lead you through the suffering. Let me show you that I am sufficient for your needs.\u201d Only when we allow God to lead us through the suffering, will our faith get strengthened. In the suffering, our eyes are turned towards the future and we live \u201cconfidently, anticipating his coming, offering him our daily lives-our acts of kindness, our loyalty, and our love-knowing that he will weave even our sins and sorrows into his sovereign purpose. Come, Lord Jesus, come\u201d (CT #57 2008).

As you journey on, 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).