In Hebrews 11:1, we are told, "Faith is being sure of what we hope for, and certain of what we do not see."

We have heard a lot about hope lately. "Hope and change" has been a recurring theme, but hope must be in something or someone that has the power to deliver what we hope for.

The only One who can deliver is Almighty God. Hope in the futility of man's plans and programs based on the wisdom of this world is like building your house on shifting sand; it will not last.

A reasonable person would have to conclude that the worldwide economic meltdown of the past few months could not have been engineered by even the most brilliant human being alive, because nobody has seen any winners. The losses have hit everybody. Truly the words of God in Proverbs 23:5 have come to pass: "Cast but a glance at riches, and they are gone, for they will surely sprout wings and fly off to the sky like an eagle."

Almighty God told Jeremiah the prophet how it worked in Jeremiah 18:7-10, when God was dealing with rebellious Jerusalem: "If at any time I announce that a nation or kingdom is to be uprooted, torn down and destroyed, and if that nation I warned repents of its evil, then I will relent and not inflict on it the disaster I had planned. And if at another time I announce that a nation or kingdom is to be built up and planted, and if it does evil in My sight and does not obey Me, then I will reconsider the good I had intended to do for it."

There can be no doubt; this is a God-sized dilemma.

We have no direct word from God about what is happening these days, but as we study the Holy Scriptures and perceive the ways of Almighty God, we cannot deny God's hand in all of this.

In the Old Testament, there was a man named Noah who lived in perilous times (Genesis 6:6-9). Noah had a sure word from God about a very definite and specific judgment coming on the earth (Genesis 6:13). In Hebrews 11:7, we are told, "By faith Noah, when warned about things not yet seen, in holy fear built an ark to save his family."

We don't know what the future holds, but we know what we have already seen, and we've heard the words of the pundits who tell us that worse days are coming.

Noah was facing a worldwide flood. He was told to build a boat that would deliver him from the judgment of God. The boat Noah built was called the ark.

The ark is a picture of Jesus Christ. The ark represented safety in the midst of the storm.

Noah suffered the loss of his lands, his crops, and most worldly possessions, but he and his family were kept safe because they were in the ark.

We have no guarantees that just because we place our faith in Almighty God, somehow we will escape the loss of worldly goods. But we do have the guarantee that our souls are safe in the hands of Jesus Christ, the Son of God, the Savior of the world.

The ark had no engine, rudder, or sail. It was totally in the hands of Almighty God as to the course it took. God delivered Noah and his family safely to dry land when the ravages of the worldwide flood were over (Genesis 8:15-17).

It is faith in Almighty God that we need. We must give our lives to Jesus Christ and trust Him to see us safely through whatever might come our way in the days ahead.