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2 Corinthians 4:16-18 NLT
"That is why we never give up."
Why? Because the good news of Jesus, the hope of resurrection is being shared - see from v1)

"Though our bodies are dying, our spirits are being renewed every day."

Paul just says it like it is! Will we let the renewel of our spirit continue even while we might be struggling physically? 
Paul isn't minimising pain or suffering, he is pointing out that we are spiritual beings and that's the most important part of us.

"For our present troubles are small and won't last very long. Yet they produce for us a glory that vastly outweighs them and will last forever!"

Paul knew what it was to be hungry, tortured, be on the brink of death, and at the same time his mind is on the Big Story, and that somehow the hurts of this world are going to become something else, something glorious. 

"So we don't look at the troubles we can see now; rather, we fix our gaze on things that cannot be seen. For the things we see now will soon be gone, but the things we cannot see will last forever."
2 Corinthians 4:16-18 NLT

Fixing our eyes on the unseen is a work of the mind and the spirit, a spiritual imagination. Poetry, art, music, contemplation, these are the kinds of things that can help us find the "forever" things. 
#corinthians
#restintheBigStory
#spiritualimagination
#youareBeloved

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