As someone who has lived in Illinois for my entire life, I understand the frustration and discouragement that has intensified over the past decade regarding Illinois living.

The housing market is difficult to navigate, gas prices are high, and our politics speak for themselves.

It is easy to become disheartened and to daydream about living somewhere else––honestly, anywhere else (except California or New York of course).

Though our living situation is most definitely difficult in Big Blue Illinois, hope is not lost.

In this article, I want to give you a few pieces of encouragement as you navigate life in Illinois.

1.) Hope is not lost because we have faithful churches that are boldly preaching Christ and Him crucified (1 Cor. 1:23).

I can think of multiple churches, including my own (and probably yours!) that have pastors faithfully preaching God’s Word. The Body of Christ and regular church attendance and fellowship is a slice of heaven on earth — no matter where you live.

It is at the in-person regular meeting of believers where we find encouragement (Hebrews 10:24), faith (Romans 10:17), grow in maturity (Ephesians 4:11-16) and where we bear one another’s burdens and serve one another (1 Corinthians 12).

A strong, Bible-believing church with strong community is crucial in our Christian walk, no matter where live. If you do not have a strong Bible-believing church, find one. If you are starved for community, get involved.

2.) Hope is not lost because we have believers living out their faith who are investing in their communities through Christian schools, co-ops, pregnancy resource centers, and much more.

Throughout history, it has always been the service and sacrifice of believers that has saved culture and civilizations.

Think of the origin of the orphanage. In Ancient Rome, unwanted babies (girls, children with disabilities, babies born into poverty, or considered unsuitable), were left exposed to the elements and wild animals and left to die.

It was not the secular humanists who recognized this evil and saved the children who were left to die.

It was the Christians, and it is the same thing today in modern America.

It is not the “human rights activists” or “mental health experts” opposing abortion, trans surgeries for minors, or opposing the breakdown of family stability through Obergefell and the many Illinois’ laws that weaken the family structure by undermining parental rights.

It is the Christians.

Never underestimate the power of obedience to Christ in a dark culture.

3.) Hope is not lost because God placed us at our address for His glory and our good.

It is so easy to forget the sovereignty of God in our daily living.

We wake up, shower, brush our teeth, get ready for the day, eat breakfast, go to work, come home, eat dinner, and go to bed. And we do it all over again the next day. The endless cycle of life.

It’s easy to forget that God’s providential hand of guidance is over even the mundane. The diaper changes, our address, the home renovation, the sick kids.

We often think of God’s providence being for a past time in a past place. We think of the providential care that God gave David and his run from King Saul. We think of God’s providential miracle in the birth of Isaac to Abraham and Sara. We think of God’s providence over the lives of the 12 apostles as they went out and fulfilled the mission that Christ gave them.

If the God who called Abraham out of Ur and sent him to a land he did not know is the same God we serve today, is it so hard to know and believe that God placed us at our zip codes for a purpose?

The reality is this: hope is not lost for Illinois because of our politicians or how affordable it is to live here.

Our hope is not lost because we serve a God who does nothing by accident. Your birth into this time and your Illinois address are a direct result of God’s providential leading over your life.

Remember the words of David in Psalm 20:7:

“Some trust in chariots and some in horses,

But we trust in the name of the LORD our God.”

God doesn’t measure success the same way we do. Our obedience and faithfulness are what brings Him pleasure. Ask the Lord what He would have you do to live out your faith in this Babylonian state in which you live.