Welcome to Nancy Guthrie’s guided journal “Hoping for Something Better,” which she based on her book of the same title (Tyndale 2007).
New journal entries will appear in your profile Monday-Saturday for 6 weeks. If you missed any so far, stay subscribed to this feed and you can begin when it starts over. Be sure to start your own journal within your Beliefnet profile or in a notebook to respond to Nancy’s prompts.
Day 13
There is something better than staying on the fringes of an intimate relationship with God. It is boldly approaching him knowing we are accepted because of Jesus.
Read Hebrews 4:14-5:10.
We’re naturally skeptical of anyone who offers advice or assistance if they’ve never been where we are. What alcoholic wants to take advice on how to handle walking past a liquor store from someone who has never had a drink? Who wants to trust a nurse who says, “It won’t hurt a bit,” if she has never had a shot?
Isn’t it a relief to know that the one who represents us before God understands what it is like to live in this world?
And he invites us to draw near. We can draw near to God knowing we’re wanted and welcome, not cowering in shame or wondering if we’ll be rejected. We can draw near with confidence that we will be accepted and wanted and provided for.
What are six things the writer tells you about Jesus in 4:14-16? Tell how each one is meaningful to you.
According to 4:14-16, what specific things are we to do because we have such a high priest? What do these things mean to you in practical terms?
In what specific area of your life do you sense a special need to “approach the throne of grace”? Based on this passage, how do you anticipate being received?
–Nancy Guthrie