My Confident Hope

It is Easter—my very favorite day of the year! Why? Yes, it ushers in spring, it points to warmer
days of being outdoors, and my favorite jelly beans abound in the stores. However, Easter is my
favorite day of the year because it celebrates the reason for the hope and joy I have in my life! I
am sometimes asked why I have a settled peacefulness about me. It is because I am
overwhelmed by the immense love that Jesus has shown me in not only dying in my place, but
proving that everything He said and claimed is true when He rose from the grave three days
after His death.

The fact that Jesus walked this earth as a real person is seldom disputed. His miracles and
claims that He was God were seen and heard my thousands, and those accounts are recorded.
Roman and Jewish history tell us of the real crucifixion of Jesus, and the fact that He was seen
by many people after His resurrection stands.

So what does all of that history mean for me today? It gives me a solid faith that everything God
has promised, everything that Jesus said and did is backed up by Him conquering death. He is
worth my trust. He is the real deal.

One of the most important things I have learned in my recovery journey is that God is faithful. I
now see God as my loving Father, not someone standing over me waiting for me to fail and
disappoint. What Jesus did on the cross frees me from any accusation of not being accepted by
God. Those condemning thoughts and accusations now hold no weight. I know with confidence
that I stand before God faultless because of the cross and the resurrection of Jesus. I no longer
feel that I have to strive to be good enough to satisfy God’s perfection. It never was up to my
ability to impress Him enough for acceptance, and now I know that deep down in my soul. It is
my confident hope.

Read these verses in Romans, and soak in the truth that, for those that trust His work on the
cross, Jesus secured our position before God. There is no one to accuse me of not measuring
up. There is no one (not even myself) to condemn me. The entire chapter is one of my absolute
favorites in the entire Bible, and I go often to these verses to remind myself that I now live in
freedom.

Not only did Jesus die on the cross to pay my penalty, not only did He rise from the dead,
proving He is God and backing up everything He said and promised, He now sits in heaven
interceding for me! He reaffirms again and again by his nail scarred hands and feet that I am
free from any accusation, any condemnation, any questioning of my standing before God!
When I truly take in what this means to me, I am overwhelmed with the kind of peace that
completely settles my soul. It is a peace that gives me confidence to daily walk through this life.
It quiets those voices in my head that say my acceptance is found in striving for perfection, in
working to achieve. The work of Jesus on the cross, and the proof by His resurrection that He is
everything He said he is, gives me a confident hope that I can live every day in my recovery free
from fear.

This Easter take time to reflect on the tremendous peace and freedom that are available by
trusting in the finished work of Jesus on the cross. Take time to ponder all that His resurrection
means. My penalty is paid. Jesus has proved Himself more than trustworthy. I am free from any
and all condemnation before God, and that, my friend, ushers in the confident hope I live every
day in!