Bill Johnson - HOPE in Any Crisis: Stop Fear and Release Gods Goodness In Uncertain Times

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HOPE IN ANY CRISIS by Bill Johnson

Published by Charisma House

Charisma Media/Charisma House Book Group

600 Rinehart Road, Lake Mary, Florida 32746

This book or parts thereof may not be reproduced in any form, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form by any meanselectronic, mechanical, photocopy, recording, or otherwisewithout prior written permission of the publisher, except as provided by United States of America copyright law.

Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture quotations are taken from the New King James Version. Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations marked NASB are from the New American Standard Bible, copyright 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. www.Lockman.org

All italics in Scripture quotations represent the authors emphasis.

Copyright 2020 by Bill Johnson

All rights reserved

Visit the authors website at bjm.org, billjohnsonbooks.com.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data:

An application to register this book for cataloging has been submitted to the Library of Congress.

International Standard Book Number: 978-1-62999-904-3

E-book ISBN: 978-1-62999-905-0

YOU MAY HAVE come to read this book because of a pandemic, natural disaster, or personal loss or devastation. Take heart; nothing catches God by surprise. On top of that, He has an answer to every earthly dilemma in His heart and mind right now. He is for us, and He longs to reveal His solutions to those who ask.

It would be wonderful if in writing this book, I could bring encouragement and hope to many. But if Im honest, I want more than that. Much more. While I long to see people set free from fear or healed of their infirmities, I also want to see them bring that same liberty to others. In other words, I want the delivered to become deliverers, the blessed to become a blessing, and the comforted to become comforters.

Hopelessness is rooted in a lie, while hope is founded on the goodness of God. And yet both hope and hopelessness are contagious. We have to choose what is going to influence our hearts and minds and in doing so determine the kind of influence were going to have on those around us.

The inspiration for this book came out of the unprecedented season of isolation and uncertainty caused by the spread of COVID-19. Both the disease and fear are pandemic, each with its own devastating consequences. But we are not left helpless victims to the whims of the powers of darkness. Jesus has given us solutions. And He has given us His authority. As you read this book, my prayer is that you will choose to embrace hope and then go out and infect as many others around you as you can.

In these pages youll find comfort in the safety of abiding in Gods presence, wisdom in three biblical responses to crisis, and power in returning to the basics of spending daily time in Gods Word, prayer, and Communion. It doesnt matter what the situation is; you and I are always called to usher in the answer, which is the gospel of Jesus Christ. This is our privilege as believers.

WHEN JESUS DECLARED that the last days would be filled with war, famine, earthquakes, and other disasters, He wasnt trying to discourage those who follow Him. Instead, He was describing the conditions into which He was sending His last-days army. This might be a surprising way to start a book on hope, but I believe its the approach we need to take. Hope isnt just a feeling we search for; its something we grab hold of and bring into every situation in our lives.

We were created with promise and purpose, with the same responsibilities to illustrate the heart of the Father that Jesus modeled for us all. He said that if we believed in Him, we would do even greater works than He did.

Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me, the works that I do he will do also; and greater works than these he will do, because I go to My Father. And whatever you ask in My name, that I will do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son.

JOHN 14:1213

We often miss a key part of this promise: it was possible only because He was going to His Father. We have to ask what this has to do with our impossible-to-understand assignment. How does His return to the right hand of the Father affect our ability to do the works of the Father at the level set by Jesus, let alone beyond? Jesus explained this when He said that if He didnt go, the Holy Spirit would not be sent (John 16:7). The third person of the Trinity, the Holy Spirit, is the connection between what is seemingly impossible and the actual fulfillment of His promise.

After mentioning He was going to the Father, He promised He would do for us anything we asked. The easiest thing in the world to do with such an extreme promise is to try to water it down, mostly to make ourselves feel more comfortable in our current level of breakthrough in miracles. While I cant speak for you, I can speak for myself: I am not in this to feel comfortable. My heart is for Him to receive glory and for me to be like Jesus. Thats it, pure and not so simple.

Lets take a look at the phrase whatever you ask. Forget for just a moment that He just promised something beyond our wildest dreams and imaginations. The part we cant afford to forget is the word ask. In other words, prayer. When Jesus gave us the command to pray for it to be on earth as it is in heaven, it was first a commandment to pray (Matt. 6:910). This is the way of the kingdom of God.

We also know that both Jesus and the Holy Spirit are interceding for us before the Father.

For we do not know what we should pray for as we ought, but the Spirit Himself makes intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered.

ROMANS 8:26

It is Christ who died, and furthermore is also risen, who is even at the right hand of God, who also makes intercession for us.

ROMANS 8:34

Sandwiched between those two extraordinary gifts is a promise that is often quoted, All things work together for good to those who love God (Rom. 8:28). Both Jesus and the Holy Spirit are interceding for us. No wonder all things work for good. Prayer is the greatest place of influence, and the Son and the Spirit take their positions for our sake and illustrate our greatest call.

One of the things central to Jesus lifestyle of purity and power was His prayer life. He spent time with His Father. This is stated throughout the four Gospels.

As we read through John 1416, we find overwhelming evidence that Jesus lived to see the Father glorified through all He said and did. For that reason, He said only what He heard His Father say and did only what He saw His Father do. He even stated that He would answer our anything-we-ask prayer for the Fathers glory. Its amazing, really.

Maintaining Strength Through Hope

Maintaining personal strength in the midst of impossible circumstances is the right thing to do for our sake. It not only enables us to dwell in all that is stable in God Himself; it also helps us to become a resource to those under our influence. In a sense, this is our debt to the world: the ark of stability in unstable times.

Many virtues equip us to have influence during difficult times, but the one I look to the most often is hope. The measure of hope that I possess determines the measure of my influence.