At the conclusion of a very helpful sermon about the relationship of faith and hope, John Piper prayed the following prayer. It has been an encouragement to me and so I send it on to you. “Lord Jesus, I believe in my heart that you were raised from the dead, and that this guarantees that Your death was sufficient to pay for all my sins. Therefore, God is for me and not against me. You, Yourself, Jesus, are alive today and with me to help forever. I pray that You will help me now to HOPE fully (completely) in Your promises, so that I am freed from the greed and self-pity that come from fear, and that I might be driven to imitate Your love and that I might always believe it is more blessed to give (to obey) than to disobey. So, Lord, grant me in these times of stress and anxiety to have the power of soul to be joyful and to fill my life with labors of love. Amen.”
