HOPE

 

Hope - a feeling of expectation and desire for a certain thing to happen.  That may be the 'dictionary' definition, yet, I'm certain that if you were to ask ten people what hope means to them, ten different answers would abound.  Hope - the desire for something better.  Hope - the knowledge that good is coming.  Hope - anticipation of expectations.  Hope.  This past year, many floundered when it came to hope, for good reason.  There were many instances of 2020 that may have 'paused' our hope button.

It's hard to have hope when people around us are sick and dying.  It's hard to have hope when so many are struggling, financially, with relationships, and with faith.  It's hard to have hope when you turn on the news and there isn't much hope being offered in the words of the newscasters.  It's hard to have hope when you can't hug loved ones.  

Hope is here.  I can firmly say that because the one who brings us the only hope we need is God.  God is good, all the time - even when hope seems to be at its last thread.   As we read the verse from today, some people may say, "I had harm in my life, I've had heartache, I'm exhausted from trying, I've lost my faith."  It's true, we have all had those feelings in our lives, especially this year.  What is so very important to remember is that we are here - at the end of 2020 - together.

At the end of a year that has tried the best of us, we are all together in faith.  We read the words of Jeremiah and know that God is for us, not against us.  The direction the world may have taken these past months may be disheartening.  Yet, God hasn't left us.  He continues to walk right beside us, to the new journeys that lie ahead for all of us.  He holds our hand and guides us.  As the future embarks on us, He is providing for our future - with HOPE!  

Hope is more than wishing - it's knowing that the world, with God, is good.  We may have seen much sadness, but we have also seen joy.  We have seen families come together around the kitchen table, eating meals together, playing games together.  We have seen kindness in providing for a neighbor or a stranger.  We have seen heroic efforts by those who truly deserve our admiration - front line workers in so many fields.  We have seen hope in a person's eyes, in their actions, in prayers, in love.  

As we enter 2021, I ask one thing of all of us - be the HOPE for someone.  God will give you all you need to be that hope for someone in need.  A kind word, a small note, a financial gift, a prayer.  Let's not just hope for ourselves, but show others what hope looks like.  For we can be rest assured that God will provide plans of prosperity and will provide us the hope we need to raise our heads from the pillow each day.  May 2021 bring you the hope that you can bring to another!

Dearest Father, we thank you for the hope that you give to us - hope that the plans you have for our lives are exactly what we need.  Let us be the hope for others, God.  May we take the outpouring of love you have for us and give it to all in need.  Amen!