Living a Life of Encouragement and Hope

by Timothy S. Weaver

Foreword

I grew up in a Christian home and learned about Jesus as a child. I understood the importance of developing a relationship with Jesus through Bible reading, prayer, worship, and fellowship with other believers. I knew that God loved me, and I had professed my faith in the saving work of Jesus on the cross. However, what I focused on each day was not hope in God’s future grace and eternal life.

When I was ten years old, I realized that God had given me a talent for gymnastics. My eagerness to learn and improve quickly made me proud of my abilities. I lived for short-term pleasures and the rewards they brought, and I enjoyed the praise I got when I did well.

Over the next six years, I progressed and accumulated a shelf full of trophies to show for it. Gymnastics became a part of who I was, and I couldn’t imagine life any other way. I hoped to compete in college and had distant dreams of Olympic glory. Although I knew that life was more than gymnastics, my lifestyle did not reflect that understanding. I had no real sense of eternity and lived only for the moment.

I regularly attended church and youth group activities. But my time and primary focus were on gymnastics and educational pursuits. My goals in life were temporal. I saw my life more as a gymnast than as a follower of Jesus, but that was about to change.

 It was at that point that God took gymnastics away from me. One summer day in the gym, I lost my orientation in the air and dove headfirst into a training pit, breaking my neck on impact and becoming permanently paralyzed. After my accident, I had to look deeper into myself to figure out who I was. It didn’t take long to remember what I had learned in church and from the Bible. My identity was in Christ, and my hope for living was in Him.

Jesus is the one thing in life that we can never lose. Everything else in life is fleeting. Yet, God’s Word and promises are certain, and He is faithful— a solid rock on which we can anchor our hopes.

For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him.  -John 3:16 – 17 

God promises eternal life to those who believe. As He continues His dialogue, Jesus explains that people are condemned from birth and that only those who believe in Him are not condemned. The world is full of evil and wickedness, which we all participate in to some degree. We are born into a hopeless state of condemnation, and the only remedy is Christ and repentance. Jesus Christ, crucified but risen to conquer the power of sin and death, is alive today. He is our living hope, through whom we can overcome anything we face in this world.

It is God’s promises and my relationship with Jesus that I clung to while lying in the hospital, and that carry me through each day.

I know I am eternal, and my hope in life is Jesus, now and forever. However, living with hope and encouragement now is a challenge.

I first began blogging in 2014 to share my life story. I wanted to share how God helped me through difficult times in my life and grew my faith.

In 2019, I published my first book, “Eternity in View,” detailing my life’s journey, and renamed my blog to match. You can now follow my ongoing development and faith at eternityinview.com.

This book is the result of many years of work, as God guided me to reflect deeply on who He is and what He has done in the world and in my life. Much of the content originated from my blog, but I have refined it for publication and added new material that I hope will strengthen your relationship with God and increase your faith.

If you don’t already know Jesus, this book will introduce you to Him and help you understand who He is and what He has done for you. For everyone else, I hope this work serves as a reminder and encouragement to endure difficult times while clarifying any doubts about the life path God has led you on so far.

I would like to thank my wife and family for their support and encouragement throughout my life. I would especially like to thank my dad and Tom Bayless, our church small group leader, who have provided valuable content reviews and editing for this work.

I hope you enjoy journeying with me as we explore how to live lives with not only temporal but also eternal impact and rewards.

Introduction: Brink of Despair

In today’s culture, it’s easy to become discouraged. Rarely do our lives go exactly as planned. Jobs and relationships often fail. Sickness, accidents, and natural disasters take from us time, possessions, and loved ones. Many people struggle to live in a socially and politically unstable environment, often facing financial hardships. Friends, family, co-workers, and associates frequently fall short of expectations, and goals often go unmet. 

We may feel overwhelmed and undervalued, working hard yet making little progress. When life’s focus is on worldly possessions, and we see our lives passing by, it’s natural to feel lost, lonely, and hopeless. The intense pressure to succeed in a fast-paced world, combined with previous failures, can lead people into depression. If life is only about the physical universe, each person has a limited time to make a difference, and then life ends for him or her. As death nears, people might fluctuate between relief that their struggles are ending, regret over unfulfilled goals and missed opportunities, fear of the unknown, and sadness over lost relationships and treasured pursuits.  

A world like this leaves little room for hope. Even short-lived success from material and social advancement can be fragile and fall apart quickly before our eyes. As we age, our bodies weaken, and our mental sharpness declines. But the Bible teaches us that this world is not the end. 

What we observe happening in the world around us, God predicted in Scripture long ago.

But understand this, that in the last days there will come times of difficulty. For people will be lovers of self, lovers of money, proud, arrogant, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, heartless, unappeasable, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not loving good, treacherous, reckless, swollen with conceit, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, having the appearance of godliness, but denying its power. -2 Timothy 3:1-5

This passage comes perilously close to describing the attitudes prevalent in most cultures today, more so than at any other point in history. Billy Graham insightfully wrote this back in 1961.

The Bible plainly teaches that one of the characteristics of the end of this age is that people will develop a capacity for delusion rather than the truth.

The scientific revolution has produced an overemphasis on the secular but a decline of faith and principle. Sin is explained away by psychological terminology. God is portrayed as a sentimental creature who never lets His wrath fall on anyone.

Thousands of Americans are enamored of, and deluded by, philosophies that are destroying the strength of the nation and threatening our security.

I wish you could look over my shoulder and read some of the letters I receive, telling of broken hearts, broken homes and shattered futures. The writers believed a lie rather than the truth.

Surely we are living in the day of which the Apostle Paul warns when he says, “They did not receive the love of the truth, that they might be saved. And for this reason God will send them strong delusion, that they should believe the lie, that they all may be condemned who did not believe the truth but had pleasure in unrighteousness (2 Thessalonians 2:10-12).”

What a mysterious and striking statement Paul makes here. And yet what a candid picture of modern man: deceived by demagogues, yet rejecting the lessons of history; deceived by the mouthings of dictators, yet indifferent to the voice of God. Driven by some diabolical, compulsive force, we rush toward the precipice of global destruction.

The Bible indicates that because we have rejected the truth, we are victims of a gigantic delusion. -Billy Graham

Billy Graham said that more than 60 years ago. The situation he described then is even more serious and urgent today.

How can anyone find lasting hope and encouragement in life? This is the question I aim to answer for you throughout the rest of this book.

For many people, fostering a life of hope and encouragement requires a shift in perspective, a new way of understanding how the world works. For others, simply clarifying long-held beliefs will be enough.

Ultimately, it all depends on our worldview—how we see the world, how it functions, and our role within it. In the pages ahead, I will show that the only worldview offering lasting hope and encouragement is based on the Bible.

Our journey starts by exploring worldviews and why a Biblical worldview is unique. Once we fully understand this worldview, we can look at how it influences our daily lives. I hope this discussion encourages you to reflect on your past and your understanding of life, and to think about your future, not just in this life but in the one to come.

Biblical Worldview

I grew up in a family that regularly attended church. This environment, which emphasizes God and His Word, helped me develop a biblical worldview. I believe that a biblical worldview is essential for living with hope and encouragement because it offers stability. But what exactly is a biblical worldview?

A worldview is the way we perceive the world around us. It is the presuppositions and underlying beliefs that shape how we interpret and understand everything we experience in life.

Everyone has a worldview. For many, it lacks God. It assumes that what we observe around us results from natural processes that stay relatively constant and evolve slowly as the universe develops. No worldview is free of assumptions and presuppositions but is based on underlying principles and beliefs. Worldviews may change as we grow in knowledge and understanding of our environment. However, our worldview ultimately influences our decisions and forms the foundation for everything we do.

A Biblical worldview involves filtering every observation, thought, idea, decision, and action through God’s Word in the Old and New Testaments. The core beliefs that support every part of life are rooted in God’s Word. 

The most fundamental and foundational aspect of a Biblical worldview is that God exists, and the Bible is His inspired revelation to us and is entirely truthful.

According to Scripture, this world and everything in it are God’s creations, including every person. Therefore, He has the right to do whatever He pleases with anything and anyone. Understanding this is essential. God is free to do anything He chooses. He owes nothing to anyone and is not obligated to do anything.

God created humanity in His image. It is through this connection that He defines who we are. We are all born with inherent dignity and immeasurable worth, which originate from and are determined by God, not society or social norms. According to a biblical worldview, your nationality, social standing, and financial situation are irrelevant to your individual worth. Everyone is of equal value to God from the moment of conception and is known and loved by Him. Our physical features and appearance are inconsequential. We are all God’s image-bearers in the world He made to display His glory. A biblical worldview rejects racism, white supremacy, and the oppression of any group. We should see others the way God sees us and celebrate our differences, glorifying Him through the diversity of lives He created.

The Kingdom of God is built on unity. God is a God for and over all people. In the book of Revelation, the last book of the Bible, the Apostle John describes a future where representatives of all nations will worship God with one unified voice.

After this I looked, and behold, a great multitude that no one could number, from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and languages, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed in white robes, with palm branches in their hands, and crying out with a loud voice, “Salvation belongs to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb!” And all the angels were standing around the throne and around the elders and the four living creatures, and they fell on their faces before the throne and worshiped God, saying, “Amen! Blessing and glory and wisdom and thanksgiving and honor and power and might be to our God forever and ever! Amen.” -Revelation 7:9-12

Please don’t misunderstand me. Heaven is more than just standing before God’s throne and rejoicing in His glory. Although I believe that experience will be one that never grows old. In this book, we won’t attempt to fully understand heaven, as it deserves much more attention than we can give it here, and to think that we can succeed in such an effort is foolhardy. At this stage in our lives, our finite minds are incapable of attaining such knowledge. Instead, our focus is on living here and now as we await God’s kingdom and the gathering of those who enter, not the details of heaven itself.

Nevertheless, some aspects of heaven are worth highlighting as we look forward to our future home. Those who live in God’s presence will experience a deep and lasting sense of satisfaction and peace. We will be of one heart and mind toward God and one another, with no arguments, disagreements, or conflicts of any kind. God makes no distinction between different people groups in His kingdom, and neither should we. The Kingdom of God will include all nationalities and communities. Living with a Biblical worldview now prepares us for that future reality.

A Biblical worldview encourages people to see life from an eternal perspective. What does that mean, and how does it show up in real-life situations?

Someone who holds this view will develop an attitude that values things beyond the physical world. The Bible teaches that we cannot take anything from this life (1 Timothy 6:7). Ultimately, this world and everything in it will be destroyed. In time, God will replace our current world with a new earth and heaven (see Revelation 21:1-6). The only things that will continue after our physical existence are God, His Word, and people. For someone with an outlook focused on eternity, material possessions and the pursuit of pleasure and entertainment will become less important. They will learn to value and love people more than possessions, emphasizing service over personal gain.

An eternal outlook provides individuals with greater hope. Momentary trials and suffering cause less anxiety as hope for future comfort grows (see Romans 5:1-5). This hope helps people endure current situations that seem out of control, chaotic, and destructive.

Additionally, unmet goals and missed opportunities become less discouraging. Although someone with an eternal perspective might enjoy the triumph and success of temporary achievements, eternal life is about much more than earthly rewards, which leave people searching for more with each accomplishment. The Kingdom of God and the enjoyment of God are the ultimate rewards that will never end or fade in importance, brilliance, excitement, and splendor. God’s Kingdom is worth more than the combined value of everything we have and do in our lifetimes. (see Matthew 13:44-46).

This kind of attitude, however, does not develop suddenly. Only after one enters into a personal relationship with God through Jesus can such an attitude form, and the change occurs gradually over his or her lifetime.

I accepted Christ Jesus as my Savior when I was a child. My understanding of eternity has deepened as I have learned more about God’s Word. However, when life goes smoothly, it’s easy to focus on success and current circumstances instead of on God and His Word. This was my experience during my early teenage years as a gymnast and high school student. Then God interrupted my future hopes and dreams. I thought I was invincible until my world came crashing down.

Often, the challenges we encounter are just bumps in the road, and we move past them. Others, like mine, call for drastic, life-changing adjustments. My accident uncovered a whole new set of expectations that redefined my life.

In any case, the trials we encounter make us take a step back. When we face difficulty, we respond based on our experiences, and our memories guide our emotional assessment of the situation.

My parents and Sunday school teachers taught me about God, Satan, Heaven, and hell. Throughout my childhood, I listened to my teachers recount Bible stories and the life lessons they contain. I learned about Jesus and His willing sacrifice for my salvation. As I grew older, I learned about other religions and developed an interest in Biblical apologetics—the defense of the faith. I read about supposed Bible difficulties and critical analysis of Scripture and Christianity. In school, I studied evolution, but I found that the Biblical creation account made more sense of the available data. 

I did not maintain a consistent devotional life during these early years, as I mostly focused on gymnastics and educational pursuits. As a result, I lacked a deep personal relationship with Jesus, and my prayer life was inconsistent and lacked substance. However, my understanding of Christianity was growing. It was important to me to know not only what I believed but also why I believed it. At that time, my faith was primarily intellectual. Yet, God was working in my life and laying the groundwork for the faith I would soon rely on.

Following my accident, I had this foundation to support me. I knew God was in control, and I needed to trust Him. In the two weeks after my fall, my hospital room felt like a reception, as a constant wave of visitors filled the doorway. I felt God’s presence comforting me. 

During those two weeks, God taught me about life’s brevity in contrast to eternity. He showed me this verse from the book of James.

Come now, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go into such and such a town and spend a year there and trade and make a profit”— yet you do not know what tomorrow will bring. What is your life? For you are a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes. Instead, you ought to say, “If the Lord wills, we will live and do this or that.” -James 4:13-15

A mist appears and disappears quickly, just like our lives. Even a century feels fleeting when compared to eternity. This eternal perspective has deeply influenced my life and guided my choices and actions. I learned that no matter how dire things seem or how tough a situation gets, it is only temporary. Even my permanent paralysis is temporary from an eternal viewpoint. This knowledge helps me to endure.

Of course, each person varies in the rate of change and how qualities are outwardly expressed. However, Scripture teaches that once God has begun a work in someone’s life, He will complete what He started, guaranteed within the comprehensive timetable He has set for this world and everything in it.

And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ. -Philippians 1:6

God’s work in and through us guarantees success. It doesn’t rely on us or anything in this world. God is the one in control.

A Biblical worldview offers a foundation for fostering hope and encouragement. Building this worldview starts with the Bible, which introduces us to God. While we see God’s glory reflected in the world around us, the Bible, God’s Word, remains our main source for understanding who God is and what He does. The first verse in Genesis states, “In the beginning, God… (Genesis 1:1).” But who is God according to Scripture, and what makes Him different from the deities of other religions that allows us to trust Him? And how can we be sure that the Bible is trustworthy and its teachings are true?

In I Am Eternal, we explore these questions more deeply as we break down what it truly means to walk in faith, hope, and trust in God.

If you’d like to continue the journey, you can find the full book here. (Amazon: I Am Eternal)

Thank you for reading. My prayer is that God strengthens your heart and fills you with lasting encouragement and hope in Him.