Refining your hope

Psalm 94:19 - "When anxiety was great within me, your consolation brought me joy."

By definition, hope is expecting something that has not happened yet. Faith and patience keep your hope alive. Put your faith in God and he will do what he has promised to you. But you need to be patient as God does things in his own time and in his own way. God doesn't always do things as we might expect him to. There is no room for doubt though. We all have our own way of doing things and God does too. You can be absolutely sure that God is already working behind the scenes on what you are hoping for behind the scenes. He is trustworthy.

If you feel that you are not particularly hopeful and would like your sense of hope to grow there are certain scriptures which will help you, in particular the ones I mention below. Read them carefully and see how they fit into your life.

Proverbs 10:28 - "The prospect of the righteous is joy, but the hopes of the wicked come to nothing." - The hope of good people lead to joy, but wicked people can look forward to nothing. Learn to put your positive hopes in the Lord and happiness will surely follow, but not necessarily the way you expect. However, any wants and desires from the wicked will be ignored and left unfulfilled.

1 Peter 1:6 - "In all this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials." - No matter how hopeless things may seem for you at times, joy can be alive in your heart as you focus on eternity, for in Jesus you will find the ultimate hope. Until you come to know Jesus Christ you will have nothing but a hopeless view of what happens after death. But if you allow yourself to know God you will be promised an awesome eternal life in heaven and that very knowledge brings people hope in the bleakest of times and it could for you too. Open your mind and let him in.

1 Corinthians 13:7 - "It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres." - One characteristic of true love is hope. God truly loves you. He always thinks the best of you, always encourages you to be the best that you can be and he always waits patiently for you to love Him and others more and more. And in those times that you have neglected him or forgotten his presence He yearns for the slightest responsibility that you will return to Him. God promises you that if you learn to truly love, you will have the same kind of hope within you.

 

All Christians must feel hope at times but how many of you can say that the feeling of hope is a constant in your life. Can you???