Victory

1 Corinthians 15:57 says "But thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ."

The key to this verse is that our victory is in Christ--not just in what He has done, but what He continues to do. So many people walk in defeat. They either depend only on what has been done or only wait on what is to come. While it is quite true that Christ ALREADY did what needs to be done, the purpose of what He did was so that we might have victory. Not a get into Heaven free card, but true victory in life. Freedom to overcome--not through our own ability, but through our dependence on Him.

I am reminded of the old hymn "Victory in Jesus" (E.M. Bartlett 1939)

I heard an old, old story,
How a Savior came from glory,
How He gave His life on Calvary
To save a wretch like me;
I heard about His groaning,
Of His precious blood's atoning,
Then I repented of my sins
And won the victory.

O victory in Jesus,My Savior, forever.
He sought me and bought me
With His redeeming blood;
He loved me ere I knew Him
And all my love is due Him,
He plunged me to victory,
Beneath the cleansing flood.
I heard about His healing,
Of His cleansing pow'r revealing.
How He made the lame to walk again
And caused the blind to see;
And then I cried, "Dear Jesus,
Come and heal my broken spirit,"
And somehow Jesus came and bro't
To me the victory.

O victory in Jesus,My Savior, forever.
He sought me and bought me
With His redeeming blood;
He loved me ere I knew Him
And all my love is due Him,
He plunged me to victory,
Beneath the cleansing flood.

I hope today that you are enjoying the victory He has for your life. As for Somalia, I know God has the victory there and am trusting in His plan.