Our soul waits for the LORD; he is our help and our shield. For our heart is glad in him, because we trust in his holy name. Let your steadfast love, O LORD, be upon us, even as we hope in you. (Psalm 33:20-22)
Beloved,
Hope is a recurring theme throughout the Bible. Hope defies reason and logic. Hope overcomes darkness and lifts the downtrodden spirit. Moses had hope when he came to the shores of the Red Sea. Joshua had hope as began his march around the walls of Jericho. Elijah had hope facing the prophets of Baal on Mount Carmel. Daniel had hope as he was thrown into the Lion’s Den. Peter had hope as he sat locked behind the prison walls. Jesus had hope as he walked up Calvary’s hill.
G.K. Chesterton wrote, “Hope means hoping when things are hopeless, or it is no virtue at all… As long as matters are really hopeful, hope is mere flattery or platitude; it is only when everything is hopeless that hope begins to be a strength.” True hope only becomes a strength when all seems hopeless. When we were hopeless in the face of death, God sent forth His Son to give us a living hope through His resurrection from the dead. The life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ has destroyed hopeless situations. As Clare Luce has so poignantly stated, “There are no hopeless situations; there are only people who have grown hopeless about them.” Beloved, as children of the God of hope, we need never be hopeless for God is our help and our shield. He is our ever-present hope in the day of trouble. Let our hearts be glad in Him because of his steadfast love.
We all may be tempted to hopelessness. Whether we are tempted to believe relationships will never be reconciled or whether we are tempted to believe there will never be victory over sin. Whatever you are tempted to hopelessness, always remember we serve a God of hope. May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope. (Romans 15:13)
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