Reflections on hope
Today I'm going to share the first of three reflections about hope, drawing on what the Bible says about hope.
Today I'm thinking about Romans 15:13
“May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.”
How often do you think of God as a God of hope?
My go to word when I think of God is love - God loves the world and everything in it. God wants us to feel loved and then to give that love to everyone else. That's been a central part of my life for many years.
But here Paul talks about the God of hope who fills us with joy and peace.
A God who doesn't judge the world, doesn't despair at our actions, but a God who sees the goodness of our hearts, who blesses us with joy and peace so that we are full of hope and can't help but share it with others.
I am an optimist, I like to think positively. But, as many of us do, I sometimes struggle with my mental health. It's been difficult in these times of lockdown, and that's when I can start to worry about everything and feel less hopeful about life, the universe and everything.
I made a conscious decision about a month into lockdown to be hopeful, to look for hope in the every day.
It challenged me to think about what that actually meant and I came up with two images
1. Light in the darkness - finding the good things amongst the troubles
2. Trust - hope is the trust that things will be good, that God has got us safe in his loving care and that we do not need to fear
Every day since then I have spent time finding the light in every day, the good things, the blessings, the hope.
And I've held onto God, trusting that all will be well, not necessarily quickly or in ways I can comprehend yet, but knowing that God wants me to trust him that hope is alive and well.
I hope this blesses you today and that you can find the light, love and hope you need.
XXX
This is the second of my reflections about hope, a word which has been so important to me in lockdown and which I want to learn more about and share with others.
Today's Bible reading is from the book of Job.
Those of you who know the book of Job are probably wondering why I've chosen a verse from a book of the Bible which is all about the suffering of a good man at the hands of Satan.
Well let me share the verse
Job 11:18
"You will be secure because there is hope; you will look about you and take your rest in safety"
These words are not words of Job but of one of his friends who has come to try and help Job in his pain, grief and suffering.
In my first reflection of this series I shared about finding hope every day. It was a decision I made to look for hope myself.
This verse draws on something else which has been so important to me in lockdown - other people.
I believe that God acts in the world, that the Holy Spirit is alive in the world and that much of this work is through people. I believe that God often blesses me through family, friends, and strangers.
In this verse we see Job being offered words of comfort, reassurance and hope. We hear about someone who wants to help a friend.
I have been blessed through lockdown to not be alone at home, but also blessed by already being connected to friends near and far on social media. It has not been a big adjustment to me to share online and sustain friendships online.
When I shared about finding lockdown challenging I was blessed with an outpouring of love, prayer and hope from people around the world; and in turn I have been able to do the same for others when they have been struggling.
Why am I sharing this? Because I want to remind us all that we are sources of hope in the world. We are God's love and hope in action.
In person or online, when we share the blessings we receive, we are sharing God's hope - we never know who that might encourage.
And that by saying when we need help, we are allowing others to share their hope with us - we are not burdening others but instead we are blessing others with the ability to help.
So please, do not think that sharing is boasting or demanding, showing off or burdening others; know that God is with us when we tell others about our lives and that by sharing we are enabling God to bring hope alive.
XXX
This is the third and probably final reflection on hope and what the Bible says about it and how that has encouraged me over the last 110 days or so.
There have been many low points over the last 4 months, times when it all got too much. Too lonely, too frustrating, too anxiety inducing. As those of you who read my blog or Facebook posts will know, a month ago I noticed that these days started to get closer together and my hope was getting less. I reached out to my GP and got help, I referred myself for counselling and I shared with friends to get the support I needed. But more than that I kept praying, earnestly praying and singing hymns which lift my heart to God. In that time I held firm to this one verse from Psalm 71:14
"As for me, I will always have hope; I will praise you more and more."
It's not one I've ever held onto before, but I stumbled upon it - or perhaps God put it in front of me, and it was exactly what I needed to hear.
At a time when I couldn't hold onto hope, when hope felt far away, I was reminded of the struggle of the psalmists and how they held onto hope in their struggles. And so therefore would I. I would find the hope in the smallest things; the dawn song of the blackbird, the fleeting hug of my teenager, the message of a friend, the meal cooked by my husband, the encouragement and prayers from friends. Points of hope, of light, of God at work in the world.
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