What do you HOPE for?

This is something that I wanted to share, because it inspired me. It made me want to strive for the right kind of hope, but also gave me encouragement.

There are 2 types of Hope

1.) Hope For Something

2.) Hope In Someone

The hope 'fors' will disappoint us. We often hope in so many things. We hope that we get all of the things done around our house, hope that we get all of our work/school work done, and hope that we have a good day. Often, we are disappointed if we have a bad day or don't get everything done that we need too. Hope is just so much deeper than hoping for something, and I guess I didn’t realize it until I listened to a message.

What do you strive for? What do you long for?

If we really think about it, we all want hope. If we don't have hope we are powerless.

Luke 23: 44 – 55

Death makes life seem so hopeless. Often tragedy strikes, and we wonder if it will ever go on, and we feel so hopeless that we watch and are overwhelmed. It's like we are watching out life unravel at the seems. About 5 months ago, our youth pastor passed away at 46 years old. At the time, I didn’t understand it, and honestly I just watched. I was so overwhelmed, and felt like life was going to unravel at any time. It was one of the hardest times I’ve been through lately, and life seemed hopeless to me.

I mean I guess I’m so use to having everything mapped out. I’m the type of person that knows what I want out of life, and I have many big dreams. Although when tragedy strikes or life doesn’t go as I have planned, I feel hopeless and lost. I think back to my life a year ago, and boy was I happy. I thought I was happy. I was dating what I thought to be perhaps the person that I would settle down with forever. I was so tired of crappy relationships, and thought I had found the one. And I wouldn’t have to go through any more bad relationship situations, but God had a different plan for my life. It was like what I hoped for and dreamed for was no longer a reality. I thought to myself, “Why God? Where are you?” Now a year later, I still wonder to some extent why things worked out the way they did, but I can tell you one think those things… I recently have started to realize why things worked out the way they did. I’m sure I haven't realized all of them, but a few are good enough for me at this moment. So.. It was like I was in a waiting period to figure out why all happened… And what was next for my life.

Trust me I don’t like to wait, and I want fast everything. I want fast car, fast driving, fast food, fast homework, and anything fast. I don’t even like waiting on God, and I’m sure I’m not the only one. The waiting part is something we don’t talk much about. We talk about what happened, and what the results are. In the Easter Story, they waited for 3 unexplainable days, and the followers are left to wait on God. Friday is known as Good Friday, and Sunday is Easter… But what about Saturday??? What happens on Saturday?

Saturday is the waiting day. If I look back on my life, I’m living most of my life on a Saturday, because I’ve done a lot of waiting. Is it possible that God is doing his best work on Saturday? I have to think so.. I want to believe that God does his best work ever on a Saturday. It’s like God does his best work in hopeless situations.

Luke Chapter 24

It’s like we have to have hope in the mist of it all. Hope is based on a God that does the impossible. We can’t manufacture hope. It wasn’t like I could pull myself out of my situation or I could fix it. I don’t possess the power too fix everything, and even if I did I’m sure I would make a mess of things. But God has the power. We try all kinds of things to find hope, power, and fulfillment, but it’s in US! God had the power, and he’s in US! He’s there all the time, and he never leaves us nor forsakes us.

What is in your life that is dead or in the tomb?

I have Christ in my life, and I am devoted to Him fully, but sometimes we still are looking around, hunting for that hope, power, or fulfillment, but we must remember that we have always had it in us.