Today is June 26.

The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit.  
 
Take a moment and quiet yourself. Take a deep breath. Welcome God’s presence. And say, “Come Holy Spirit.”   
  
Today’s reading is from the book of 1st Thessalonians, chapter 4.  

Brothers and sisters, we do not want you to be uninformed about those who sleep in death, so that you do not grieve like the rest of mankind, who have no hope. For we believe that Jesus died and rose again, and so we believe that God will bring with Jesus those who have fallen asleep in him. According to the Lord’s word, we tell you that we who are still alive, who are left until the coming of the Lord, will certainly not precede those who have fallen asleep. For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever. Therefore encourage one another with these words.  
  
This passage speaks to death, grief, and the resurrection of all believers. It’s a passage filled with hope, and a heavenward view. How do you feel, thinking about such things? 
  
Holding a mixture of grief and hope is a uniquely Christian experience. As you listen to the passage again, think about which side of that mixture feels most real to you today: the side of grief? Or the side of hope?  
  
Can you recall a time when you experienced a deep sense of hope – a kind of hope that you know is a gift from God, because perhaps your circumstances weren’t that hopeful? As we end our time of prayer, remember that your hope is grounded in the reality of the resurrected Christ, who will come again.  
 
Music: All Things Rise - Vineyard Worship: (YouTube)