093 – MAY 2011
THINK ABOUT IT
It’s tough out there. There’s a lot of stuff in the air. World stuff. U.S. stuff. Economy stuff. Health, money, and relationship stuff. Family stuff. Stuff stuff.
Life problems can sometimes overwhelm us. Issues of defeat and worry can put a cloud over our spirit and , if we don’t guard our hearts, could elbow us into a bit of depression.
Difficulties can cause our hope to spring a leak … or take a long vacation.
Proverbs 13:12 “Hope deferred makes the heart sick …”
In the Bible, there was a guy named Job who faced some enormous life problems. All of his troubles caused Job to view life with some hopelessness and depression.
Job 6:11 “What strength do I have, that I should hope?
Job 7:6 “And what is my end, that I should prolong my life?
My days are swifter than a weaver’s shuttle, And are spent without hope.”
Solomon (the wisest person ever!) writes a whole 12 chapters (Ecclesiastes) in a search for answers to life’s questions. As he plods through all of this, he solves very little. He appears disheartened and even a bit weakened after the quest.
Ecclesiastes 2:17 “Therefore I hated life because the work that was done under the sun was distressing to me, for all is vanity and grasping for the wind
It has to do with our hope … or our lack of it.
In a TV episode of House - the quarrelsome doctor passed judgement on a patient who was happily hopeful; “That guy will never be happy.”
His associate replied, “When you are hopeful, you will always be happy.”
Hmmm! Maybe true! Maybe not! Think about it!
Hope implies that there is good stuff out there also. Family, friends, faith!
Personally, I don’t battle a lack of hope too often. I have a great hope in God and … I put my hope in Him.
And, my hope is from God. It is supernatural! It’s a hope that permeates my soul and becomes a foundation to the joy that I find in Christ. It’s true!
Hebrews 6:19 “We have this hope as an anchor for the soul, firm and secure”
Spiritual hope is not a want or a wish. It is not a craving or a dream. Spiritual hope is a “knowing” … an “assurance” of something yet to come.
Romans 8:25 “But if we hope for what we do not yet have, we wait for it patiently.”
And, one day - I know I will see Him “face to face”.
