HOPE, HOPE, HOPE

I was awake during the night so I turned on the TV to catch up on the news. I quickly found myself wishing I had turned on cartoons. The news hasn't been so good of late. It is heart-breaking as well as frightening the level of anger and hatred in the world. The number of mass shootings and other kinds of attacks are staggering.

We could easily get discouraged.

We could easily lose all sense of hope.

My devotion this morning from Luci Swindoll said this:

Eugene Peterson says when we live expectantly, 'we can round up enough containers to hold everything God generously pours into our lives.' through His Spirit. Hope is our opportunity to look at life with excitement and anticipation. There is something about it that opens the floodgates of heaven. Not only are we the benefactors of His blessing and grace, we're given a chance to grow in the process. Our patience is developed, our character is refined, our minds become more alert and our eyes stay fixed on the prize. Life is framed through a wide-angle lens... Even if we don't get the exact thing we were hoping for, life comes into clearer focus. -- Women of Faith Devotion Bible

 I've gotten a few private posts from friends who have been reading my posts. They write to say how amazing and how wonderful I am. I laugh. Amazing and wonderful I am not -- far from it. I mess up the most. I can be the grouchiest of them all. I know there are people who would line up to tell you how amazing and wonderful I am NOT. 

What I am is a person filled with HOPE.
HOPE nudges me and reminds me there is a "yes" when the world shouts "no."
HOPE reminds me even when everything seems dead or dying around me, it will continue to nudge its way through the dirt and breathe in abundant life.
HOPE encourages me to look up when the darkness of the world tries to pull me down.
HOPE reminds me my name is Beloved, Child of God

I love the Book of Romans. It is an incredible book found in the New Testament of the Bible. In chapter 5 we are reminded: 

Therefore, since we are justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have obtained access to this grace in which we stand; and we boast in our hope of sharing the glory of God. And not only that, but we also boast in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope

Romans 5:1-4

That text reminds us to find our hope in Jesus Christ -- not in some dynamic personality. 

Too many times it seems we fall in to the trap of worshiping some person -- a sports star or movie star or boss or political figure or spiritual leader or family member -- BAD idea.. BAD, I say! Say it with me:  BAD!

Because we are human we fall -- every one of us. It is by the grace of God we get back up again. In so doing we extend grace to one another, forgive and move forward.

We only worship our living and loving Lord. He cannot fall or fail. It is in Him our HOPE rests.

I don't mean to sound like I'm preaching -- I'm just sharing from my heart. I had to do so after watching the news!

It's time for a nap.

Enjoying the Journey,

Debra

bebprov356.blogspot.com

Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding.

In all your ways acknowledge Him and He will make your path straight.

Proverbs 3:5-6