Having Hope

Our amazing pastor preached another great sermon yesterday. It was part of several weeks he's taking on the subject of HOPE. Maybe I took extra good notes, or maybe God is keeping his words in the forefront of my mind this week...whichever it is, I feel I should share my thoughts and how it relates to our present situation.

God has His own "secret purposes" and we are not called to question, but to acquiesce; humbly accept. HOPE - real hope - is a certainty when we know Christ. Hebrews talks about faith being sure of what we HOPE for. If we believe His word, we know that we can hold on tight to the hope we have because He is faithful. Believing He is faithful, even in the face of trials, is having faith. Hope always hangs out with faith. When you have faith, you have HOPE.

Romans says we can rejoice in our sufferings because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, HOPE. And when you have the Holy Spirit, He takes the suffering you are going through, mixes it with the scripture that is written on your heart, and from that creates HOPE.

Until this past Sunday, I didn't really know or understand about HOPE. Oh I knew about hope, and was pretty sure I had some, but because I am able to feel at peace, I can be certain I have this HOPE. Even as I write this, tears are falling, but that's okay. Having HOPE doesn't mean your problems go away. It doesn't mean you won't feel the pain. It just means you know this isn't the end of the story.

Through this experience with Carina, I have been told I'm brave, or that I'm a testimony, and that people are pretty surprised at how strong I'm being. I don't feel brave. There are days I barely get through. It's hard to think of myself as a testimony...you should see me when I drive! And my strength relies entirely on Christ being strong for me, as well as the prayers I know are coming in on a daily basis from our friends and family. But this is just more evidence that I can know I have HOPE: it's obvious to everyone else, even when I am unsure. But just as our pastor said on Sunday, I don't go around telling people I have hope and see if they'll ask me about it. They just do. Sometimes it's even on days when I'm right on the edge of breaking down. And sometimes it's on days when I really need to hear it and be reminded that, oh yeah, this isn't the end of my story!

I am so thankful for our pastor and the wisdom he brings to our church, and to my life. It's funny because, I never thought I would be a permanent fixture at this church. Yet here we are. And looking back, I can see how God has been working in my life for a very long time just to bring me to this place.

And again, I have HOPE.