“This is not where our hope lies.”
When the words came out of my mouth, they surprised and comforted me. My heart reset. Right. This is truth.
It was several years ago. My husband was about to interview for a dream job. But there was a lot of anxiousness in our hearts, because there was no assurance of him getting hired. And if he didn’t — what then? Or if he did — was this really the dream job we thought it would be? We began to realize that we were putting all our hope on this one thing, but we had absolutely no assurance of it coming through for us.
“This is NOT where our hope lies.”
Hope is trusting that things will be good in the future. That it will get better. That we will be alright.
But we mustn’t put our hope in something that is incapable of keeping those kind of promises. Does a president have the power to make your life better? Does any politician, or policy, or job, or retirement plan, or school? Is any human — or human-made thing — able to securely guarantee that everything is going to be alright?
The only power that can promise real hope is not found among humans, or human-made institutions. We cannot stop every heartache, heal every wound, or restore what has been taken. We can try, but it will never be enough. The human race needs a bigger hope than we alone can give.
“The thought of my suffering and homelessness is bitter beyond words. I will never forget this awful time, as I grieve over my loss. Yet I still dare to hope when I remember this: The faithful love of the Lord never ends! His mercies never cease. Great is his faithfulness; his mercies begin afresh each morning. I say to myself, “The Lord is my inheritance; therefore, I will hope in him!”” Lamentations 3:19-24 NLT
THIS is where our hope lies.
Guard your heart. Do not put your hope in the things that are unable to guarantee compassion, faithfulness, love, justice and restoration like God can.
“And so, Lord, where do I put my hope? My only hope is in you.” Psalms 39:7 NLT
“Look at my Servant, whom I have chosen. He is my Beloved, who pleases me. I will put my Spirit upon him, and he will proclaim justice to the nations. He will not fight or shout or raise his voice in public. He will not crush the weakest reed or put out a flickering candle. Finally he will cause justice to be victorious, and his name will be the hope of all the world.” Matthew 12:18-21 NLT