2 Corinthians 1:10
10 He has delivered us from such a deadly peril, and he will deliver us again. On him we have set our hope that he will continue to deliver us.
This is a great testimony of how God helps us through difficult times. Paul experienced many times coming close to death. Most of us do not face persecution or trials to that extent but we face difficult times nonetheless. Our memories tend to be short. We look only at the present moment and forget what God has done for us in the past. Memory of the past is helpful for faithful living in the future. Memory builds confidence in God’s promises. Paul references the past, present, and future in this verse. The verb “we have set” is a perfect tense, indicating that at a point in the past, Paul set his hope on God’s deliverance, and this hope has remained to the present and will continue into the future. This is significant to remember as we read in the rest of the letter about the various challenges Paul faced in his ministry.
Last night I met a wonderful 82 year old saint named Ruth who has served the Lord as a missionary all her life. She was born in India, lived for 20 years in Tibet, has been to the Philippines preaching on the streets and in the farms. She never married but has been serving the Lord all her life. She is a prayer warrior who has total confidence in God’s care. God has delivered her many times in her life. She shared several stories with me and said she would pray for our family.
Finding models of confidence and hope like Ruth can be great encouragement to us as we face our own journeys. Let us set our hope on God who will deliver.