Hope in Any CrisisShembull

The Irreverence of Hope 

The thought of soaring during times of crisis almost seems flippant to many. Yet trials don’t affect our destinies. They affect only the journey. And considering that our Father is the One who uses all things for His glory and our strength, we must hold on to hope. Even the most undesirable situation can be used for our promotion.

Deliberately feeding ourselves on the things that make us useful in crises is paramount to our fulfilling our design. We were born to live and thrive with hope! Hope is the soil that faith grows in. Hope doesn’t cower in the face of a mountain, but it is faith that removes the mountain. Hope is a general approach to all things in life. Faith is specific and intentional. Faith is not the result of striving. It is the result of surrender. Yielding to the purposes of God and, more specifically, to the Word of God is the pathway of great hope and faith.

Hope has to have a foundation. And that foundation is the goodness of God. A person without hope either has lost sight of His goodness or was never convinced in the first place. Regardless, the solution is simple: Return to Him. Return to the One who loves us beyond measure. It doesn’t get any simpler or more profound than this.

“For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.” John 3:16

That is pure, unadulterated goodness. Paul adds to this truth:

“He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, how shall He not with Him also freely give us all things?” Romans 8:32

His gift to us was so extreme that everything else needed in this life, and throughout all eternity, was automatically included. Meditating on such truths should give us the courage and hope to approach life with certainty. It’s not a certainty of knowing what will happen and when. It’s a certainty that we are held in His hand and are automatically positioned for forward motion and increase.