Hope

“But now, Lord, what do I look for? My hope is in you. Psalm 39:7

As for me, I will always have hope; I will praise you more and more. Psalm 71:14

I was at church a few weeks ago and I heard someone use a word that I hear very often but have not given much thought to this simple word's meaning. The word was hope. People use the word hope when talking about a lot of things. They hope for a good grade, they hope for a good job, they hope for a great marriage, they hope to be successful, and they hope to always have hope. I think we often hope for things that we should be praying about and working toward. What happens to a person when they lose all hope? Maybe they turn to a life of drug or alcohol use to mask the loss of hope. Marriages end because a husband or wife has lost hope in the future with their spouse, and people commit suicide every day because they have lost hope. But we also see people who have lost everything except hope. Maybe they have lost family, friends, jobs, or money but they still have hope. People survive terrible illness or tragedy and all they have left is an ounce of hope.

Where do you find your hope? I am blessed because I can always count on family, but my hope should never be in humans. I have been fortunate to be successful in my job, but I should never put my hope in my career because it could change drastically tomorrow. Our hope should always come from and be in our Savior Jesus Christ. Our hope in Him comes from remembering the blessings we have in our life and from remembering what He has done for us. We have faith and a hope for a great future because He promises to give us a future and a hope. Our hope is not in the things we see every day or the people we know but in the promise that He is always with us, guiding each step of our life. When our hope comes from Jesus alone, we will always have a great hope regardless of the trials we face and the ups and downs of life.

I HOPE you have a great day,

Chad