By DiAnn Mills @DiAnnMills
Hope is as much a part of our lives as breathing. We thrive on a better tomorrow and long for a spark of optimism in a world that appears to have turned upside down.
Your hopes, dreams, and aspirations are not the same as mine, but that doesn’t change the importance. In our still moments, we focus on what we believe will make the perfect world. Our expectations focus on what ensures something good will happen. The sensation is thrilling, and it’s our human nature to grasp onto the positive and not the negative.
- I hope the weather is pretty.
- I hope my health check-up is good.
- I hope my child behaves for the babysitter.
- I hope I get a raise.
- I hope . . .
I took a non-scientific poll from 50 people on Facebook on what hope meant to them. I expected a variety of responses from world powers to politics to a specific religion. The top 5 responses are below:
- My hope is in Jesus and His love.
- My hope is in my faith and optimism.
- My hope is in the acrostic: H = Holding. O = Onto. P = Promised. E = Eternity.
- My hope is in Scripture.
- My hope is in peace.
The sobering truth is faith in Jesus Christ hit 95 percent of the answers, which reminded me of what the Bible says about hope.
- Matthew 6:21 ESVÂ For where your treasure is, there is your heart also.
- Isaiah 40:31 ESV But they who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint.
- 2 Corinthians 4:18 ESVÂ As we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal.
- Romans 15:13 ESV May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope.
Barna reports in a January 2023 article titled Rising Spiritual Openness in America, “A majority of U.S. adults desires a spiritual dimension to life.” I encourage you to read this article. It addresses the hope so many of us desperately crave.
I hope you are filled with holy anticipation in discovering your hope. What wisdom can you share regarding the hope you have?
DiAnn, I love reading your novels & your blog!
After reading your blog on Tuesday about “Hope”, I clicked on a preview of a book titled Project Solomon: The True Story of a Lonely Horse Who Found a Home and Became a Hero, by Jodi Stuber & Jennifer Marshall Bleakley. (Long title!) Since this was non-fiction, I thought I would glance at the authors, read maybe the first page, and then delete.
The link to Jodi Stuber took me to the website for her “HopeWell Ranch” in Michigan. The blurb at the top said, “Hearts, Hooves, Healing–Hope!” And I was hooked! This is a book that I will look for in my library!
If you are not familiar with this title, I thought this might intrigue you, too.
Blessings! Keep up the great writing!
DiAnn,
A beautiful reminder of all things hoped for. Since the first time I sang Brahms’ German Requiem (in German, by the way), my favorite line from that great work has been “my hope is in Thee.” This is from Psalm 39:7. Everything I ever dreamed of, prayed for, and hoped for has its roots in these simple words. He is the source of all that I am or will ever be.
Thank you!
Debra, what a beautiful image of hope. Thank you for sharing your experience – and someday I need to hear you sing.
Without God there is no hope, so because of Him I have hope: the expectation of what I cannot see, yet I long for. In a practical sense, right at the moment, hope is seeing my book published.
Thank you, Frances. The expectation of eternal life with God is worth all the world can toss our way.
The best definition I’ve ever heard given for hope is “the confident expectation of something good.” It’s not “wishful thinking,” but I think many of us tend to treat it as such. Wishful thinking expects the worst but wants the best. The reason God said our hope is to be in Him is because we cannot be confident in expecting something good unless the source of what we desire is both good and absolutely able to deliver. God is Good, He is fully able, and He gives good gifts. Only this hope abides eternally with faith and love, regardless of our current circumstances.
Diana, thank you for your insight and wisdom. We believe in what we cannot see because we believe in a God who has revealed His character and love to us.
Susan,
Your comment is brief, yet impactful. For Christians, our hope is connected to trust. Psalms 71:5 says, For thou art my hope, O Lord God: thou art my trust from my youth.
The writer is implying that God has a track record. God has been his source of hope from childhood therefore God can be trusted. He cannot fail.
Normally, hope faces forward. It is a future expectation. The writer hasn’t experienced failure in his dependence on God which is why he can go back and remember what God did yesterday to build trust and hope for tomorrow.
Hope is counting on God. He hasn’t failed me yet.
Dawn, your words show all of us how to trust God for every breath of life. Thank you
Thank you for this. My Hope is peace.
Thank you, Leona. Yes! God is our peace.
My hope is in the Lord. It’s as simple as that. I love the encouraging Bible verses (which I should be reading more often). I recently saw The Jesus Revolution which is based on a true story about Chuck Smith and the Calvary Chapels in Orange, County, CA and their influence on Greg Laurie. If you possibly can, see this inspiring movie.
Hi Judith. The movie is on our to-be-watched list. Thank you for the reminder and your words of encouragement.
Love this! My hope is built on nothing less than Jesus Christ, the Solid Rock!
Thanks, Cheryl. Your words reminded me of the song: On Christ, the Solid Rock I stand.
You are always so encouraging, DiAnn! Blessings to you and yours! My hope is in Jesus for sure! How good God, Jesus, and Holy Spirit are! We are blessed!
Thank you, Sue. Be blessed!