I heard someone speak about hope as an invitation to disappointment.
“I’m hoping for something to happen when I know the odds are stacked against it. So when I say I hope it goes well, I really mean I’m worried it won’t.”
We’ve all hoped that sort of hope. I hope my friend recovers from cancer. I hope she finds a new job. I hope the FREEDOM TOUR goes well this year.
We hope those things happen, but perhaps, like the ambivalent speaker, we’re also prepared for disappointment.
That’s not hope, not the hope described by Paul in 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.
The God of hope is not a God of disappointment. He’s the God who always keeps His promises.
HOPE is a confident expectation based on faith that God always keeps His promises.
So I’m confident my friend will be safe, cared for, and at peace in Jesus’ arms regardless of his physical condition.
I’m confident she can search for a new job calmly and peacefully, keeping the big picture in mind, regardless of short-term obstacles.
I’m confident God will guide the right people to the FREEDOM TOUR and give us direction, even when it seems chaotic from my perspective.
That’s hope. Those are God’s promises.
He never promised it would be easy or that He’d fulfill our short-term (or long-term) wishes. The prayer says “…thy will be done…”
We wish with fingers crossed. We move forward with confident hope in God’s promises into changed lives. We move forward in impossible circumstances.
HOPE changes what’s POSSIBLE.