16 May our Lord Jesus Christ himself and God our Father, who loved us and by his grace gave us eternal encouragement and good hope, 17 encourage your hearts and strengthen you in every good deed and word. 2 Thessalonians 2:16-17

As I’ve mentioned multiple times throughout this and the previous book, Paul provides us with model prayers and blessings to pray over others. When you’re able to memorize and pray these prayers over people, they are blessed. You bless them; they bless you, and you both bless God.

I mean, who doesn’t want eternal encouragement and good hope? Everyone wants those intangibles of life. In fact, everyone needs those things. We as believers already have them but we need to be reminded that we have them. Why? Because we forget. We forget a lot of things actually. That’s why we need reminders.

And this is your reminder that you as a believer in Jesus Christ have eternal encouragement. One day this life will be but a faded memory and you will be welcomed home – to your true home. It could be today. It could be tomorrow, or it could be 30 years from now, but you will be treated to a life significantly better than what you are experiencing now.

This is our hope, our good hope.

Encourage one another with these words.