The painful side of Hope.

Probing Proverbs 13:12 Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but a dream fulfilled is a tree of life.

If there is any one thought that expresses a person’s concept of Who Jesus Christ is, it is Hope! When I hear a person state something is hopeless I know for a fact that they have loss sight of Christ. Obviously I have experienced this with unbelievers, but what is so painful is when I experience it with believers.

Please do not think I am not sensitive to the fact that emotions of despair impact us all, but so far, by God’s grace I have not crossed the line where I have lost all hope. Hopelessness and Christ are incompatible!

For example, when I have counseled a couple that believe their relationship is hopeless, no one can save it, I have them turn to John 7. As we go through the passage I ask them what kind of communication did Mary and Martha have with Lazarus?  What kind of “warm and fuzzies” did they have? The answer is a stark one …none…Lazarus was DEAD! So if we believe in the same Jesus as John 7, and if both individuals in the marriage are still breathing, then they are already far ahead of Lazarus and his sisters. If Jesus can restore the relationship of a dead man, He can restore any marriage!

Easter should be a time of hope. We are examining the world’s hope versus God’s hope, which is a Living hope! I am using the acronym H.O.P.E. to illustrate. Let’s review:

1 Peter 1:3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His great mercy has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead,

World’s hope: We saw that the world’s hope is Hazardous! It depends on fate.

Living Hope: God’s hope brings Help from on High! We are not even dependant on ourselves! God is the source of our hope.

No we look at the O.

As I stated, hope is most experienced when we are in the midst of difficulties. Scriptures call these “Trials” and no one is exempt! We live in a very fallen world, and that world attacks us from every direction it can. Whether it is by taking away everything you have, leaving you to feel abandoned, or by giving you all the material things you desire, leaving you empty inside as you discover “things” can never satisfy the hunger of the soul. As this goes on the world’s hope turns every Trial into Opposition – all you can see is the negative. You see no good from it, just trouble and discomfort. At best you say to yourself, “suck it up, and just get through it!” You may survive, but the gain you could have had is never realized.

God’s Hope does not spare you from Trials, but it brings a different point of view. Living Hope brings the “Ouch!” to life. Reality must be a part of life…if it is an authentic life. The “Ouch” of hope brings 3 very important realities to our life.

First: We need to develop a patient approach to life. Immediate gratification does not become our norm. We wait upon our God, Who will bring to reality our hope in His time.

Romans 8:24-25 For in hope we have been saved, but hope that is seen is not hope; for why does one also hope for what he sees?  But if we hope for what we do not see, with perseverance we wait eagerly for it.

Second: We desire relief; God knows we need strength. The world is a tough place; if we cannot handle the little trials we can never experience the victory of overcoming large trials! Jeremiah is asking God about the trials he is going through:

Jeremiah 12:1-5 You are always righteous, O Lord, when I bring a case before you. Yet I would speak with you about your justice:  Why does the way of the wicked prosper?  Why do all the faithless live at ease? You have planted them, and they have taken root; they grow and bear fruit. You are always on their lips but far from their hearts. Yet you know me, O Lord; you see me and test my thoughts about you

God challenges Jeremiah about his perception of the trials he is enduring:

…"If you have raced with men on foot and they have worn you out, how can you compete with horses? If you stumble in safe country, how will you manage in the thickets by the Jordan?

Third: We can turn a trial from an opportunity to fail into a potential for growth! I had a professor that used to call trials “opportunities in working clothes!” How true, if we have the proper mindset we can see trials as good, painful as they are. 

James 1:2-4 Consider it all joy, my brethren, when you encounter various trials,  knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance.  And let endurance have its perfect result, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.

The So What: How much time do you spend wishing things were different than they are? Have you embraced the life God has given you, the easy and the difficult? Do you see times of trouble, only as trouble? When was the last time you went through a trial and noticed the growth you gained from it?