1 Thessalonians 4:16–17: Hope
16 For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first:
17 Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord.
This scripture testifies that of an amazing promise available to each of us because of the atonement of the Savior – that even after life ends here on earth, there is hope for greater and a more beautiful eternity.
One of the truths of the gospel is that “we are eternal beings…endings are not our destiny” (Elder Jeffrey R. Holland). We have the ability to be with our families forever, to be truly happy, perfected, and healed of all of our afflictions.
Knowing that our Savior lives, that he has felt the pain of our smallest trials and our biggest heartbreaks, and that he will return for us provides pure hope for what lies ahead of us, even if there are a rough days between now and then. From humble beginnings in Bethlehem, the hope for eternity for all mankind became possible. Similarly, Heavenly Father gives each of us so many opportunities to bring hope to those we live our lives with.
What can we do to share the hope the Savior has brought us with those we love this Christmas season?
I’m a newlywed, a convert, and a Michigan girl. My husband and I live in a little studio apartment and love to go on adventures. I have some pretty pieces of paper on my wall that say I’m not too shabby at communications and economics. I really love hockey, books, 2 Nephi 2:25, sunsets, and anything pink.
I love this thought and this scripture! Ours is a religion of pure hope!