Faith, Hope, and Love. These three abide.

Love is the ultimate commitment that forms our character for it is the very nature of God. Faith is the trust in God’s love that firms the ground upon which we stand. Or as Hebrews 11 says, the conviction of things not seen. Faith is showing up on a Sunday morning to worship someone no eyes have seen. Faith moves mountains by the conviction that one scoop of dirt at a time will eventually bring about a movement. That brings us to hope. Hebrews 11 says that faith leads to hope. It is a feeling of expectation and feeling of desire for a certain thing to happen. Hope flows out of love and faith to create a feeling of trust.

Hope is the confidence that tomorrow will be okay...eventually. Why? This quiet assurance emanates from the fact we can face tomorrow because regardless of what it holds we know who ultimately holds tomorrow. As our grand hymn says, BECAUSE HE LIVES. I CAN FACE TOMORROW. That is the living hope 1 Peter 1.3 speaks about.

Hope makes life livable. Without hope life is impossible.

So, how do I get hope?

1) Romans 5:5 - have FAITH that suffering, leads to endurance and endurance character and character leads to hope.

2) Commit (LOVE) a community where stories are shared. Hope can be taught and caught. Hope is a gift to receive.

3) Find someone who you can be hope for.