Hope is a powerful word. When all seems lost, hope believes that there is a chance for success, victory, restoration, healing, and many other life-changing goals. I have been in several situations over the years as a pastor where there seemed to be no hope for a marriage, a salvation need, or change of direction, etc. Then, God “showed up” in a person’s life, and the rest is history. Now, that person has a powerful testimony to share with others. Now, that person has a source of gratitude that will spur him or her on to greater things. Now, that person has seen that God is real, and he is trustworthy, no matter what his or her circumstances once told him or her. Hope replaced hopelessness.
In the last moments of Jesus’ life on earth, he was preparing his disciples for “good grief.” He explained that he was soon to leave them. Imagine your spouse, parents, kids, or best friends telling you that they are leaving you, and you’re not going to see them for a while. That would be disconcerting at a high level. Why? Because these are the people who we love, trust, and “do life with” on a regular basis. Jesus wanted his disciples to be prepared for this difficult time. He was leaving, but his encouragement to them was that he was returning too.
In what appeared to be a disastrous defeat, Jesus would die on The Cross. When this happened, the corrupt culture and the devil himself rejoiced as though the God of all creation had finally been defeated. Jesus warned his disciples that they would be full of desperation and despair. He wanted them to understand that what appeared to be defeat was in fact the only pathway to ultimate victory. Sometimes we must go through pain before we can get to the promise. Sometimes we must endure struggle before we can realize our salvation. Sometimes we must hurt before we are able to realize our hope. Life has seasons.
No matter what you are presently enduring in your life, never lose hope in the sovereign hand of God. Nothing takes him by surprise! You and I are going to experience problems and pains in this life. Just because you don’t see the full picture doesn’t mean that God isn’t working behind the scenes to create the most beautiful masterpiece of grace in your life. There are also a lot of things in life that happen to us that we are not going to understand until we get to heaven someday. Why did my cousin, who loved Jesus and his family, get killed by a “drunk driver?” Why did my sister beat leukemia only to die the next day of a blood clot and aneurism? Why did the girl in my youth group have to die in a house fire? Why did I go through the pain of getting fired from my first ministry, when all I did is serve Jesus and love kids? You see what I mean... We have questions, and that’s ok. What cannot happen – we lose hope. Why? Because hope is trusting in God’s eventual work in us.
Jesus used the powerful illustration of a pregnant woman to teach the power of hope. While she endures such excruciating pain for a moment; she receives the greatest gift from that challenging experience. My mother when she gave birth to me went through about 24 hours of labor before I was born. We laugh about it now, as my dad tells me some of the more colorful things that my mom said to him in that time ?. Don’t miss the point: pain brought about the gift – human life. Be encouraged to know that God is not going to waste your tears. In fact, he is going to use them so that you might grow closer to him in purpose and passion. Remember, nothing takes him by surprise.
I’m reminded of the “greatest” Bible verse when it comes to struggle now with hope coming. It’s from David in Psalm 30:5 “For his anger lasts only a moment, but his favor lasts a lifetime; weeping may stay for the night, but rejoicing comes in the morning.” How awesome is that!
In the last moments of Jesus’ life on earth, he was preparing his disciples for “good grief.” He explained that he was soon to leave them. Imagine your spouse, parents, kids, or best friends telling you that they are leaving you, and you’re not going to see them for a while. That would be disconcerting at a high level. Why? Because these are the people who we love, trust, and “do life with” on a regular basis. Jesus wanted his disciples to be prepared for this difficult time. He was leaving, but his encouragement to them was that he was returning too.
In what appeared to be a disastrous defeat, Jesus would die on The Cross. When this happened, the corrupt culture and the devil himself rejoiced as though the God of all creation had finally been defeated. Jesus warned his disciples that they would be full of desperation and despair. He wanted them to understand that what appeared to be defeat was in fact the only pathway to ultimate victory. Sometimes we must go through pain before we can get to the promise. Sometimes we must endure struggle before we can realize our salvation. Sometimes we must hurt before we are able to realize our hope. Life has seasons.
No matter what you are presently enduring in your life, never lose hope in the sovereign hand of God. Nothing takes him by surprise! You and I are going to experience problems and pains in this life. Just because you don’t see the full picture doesn’t mean that God isn’t working behind the scenes to create the most beautiful masterpiece of grace in your life. There are also a lot of things in life that happen to us that we are not going to understand until we get to heaven someday. Why did my cousin, who loved Jesus and his family, get killed by a “drunk driver?” Why did my sister beat leukemia only to die the next day of a blood clot and aneurism? Why did the girl in my youth group have to die in a house fire? Why did I go through the pain of getting fired from my first ministry, when all I did is serve Jesus and love kids? You see what I mean... We have questions, and that’s ok. What cannot happen – we lose hope. Why? Because hope is trusting in God’s eventual work in us.
Jesus used the powerful illustration of a pregnant woman to teach the power of hope. While she endures such excruciating pain for a moment; she receives the greatest gift from that challenging experience. My mother when she gave birth to me went through about 24 hours of labor before I was born. We laugh about it now, as my dad tells me some of the more colorful things that my mom said to him in that time ?. Don’t miss the point: pain brought about the gift – human life. Be encouraged to know that God is not going to waste your tears. In fact, he is going to use them so that you might grow closer to him in purpose and passion. Remember, nothing takes him by surprise.
I’m reminded of the “greatest” Bible verse when it comes to struggle now with hope coming. It’s from David in Psalm 30:5 “For his anger lasts only a moment, but his favor lasts a lifetime; weeping may stay for the night, but rejoicing comes in the morning.” How awesome is that!