Hope Has a Name
Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to His great mercy, He has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead...1 Peter 1:3
Who doesn't want hope? No...not some mythical exaggeration of ill gotten fantasies that perpetrate false securities leaving us disappointed and disillusioned. Millions are akin to the walking dead because what life they think they are living is given to putting their hope in things that will ultimately bring them to their knees. The "stuff" that convinces them where to put their hopes leaves a bitter taste after the sweet morsel of pleasure has vanished from their tongue. The lust of the flesh beckons them into its web making them believe that there is no such thing as decay. The lust of the eyes whisper sweet nothings in their spirit until the trap of greed and selfishness has been set. The pride of life prepares a feast of promises that leaves those at its great banquet table with incredible indigestion and heartburn. Hope that is based on cotton candy, that dissolves faster than a snowball on the Fourth of July, ultimately leaves us empty, hungry, and dying of thirst.
However, there is hope that has sustaining power; that gives us the courage to take another step after we have been knocked off our feet...again. There is hope that gives our back strength to stand tall, even when the enormous weight we carry seems to get heavier by the day. There is hope that helps us believe the darkness of midnight is only temporary and our blackened sky will soon begin to change colors. Genuine, potent hope comes from some of the most unlikely sources. When we lay our burdens down and shoulder someone else's, we give them hope. When we sacrifice our time and give it to another, real hope is born. When we take the coat off our back and give warmth and comfort to the shivering and lost, we plant a seed of much needed hope. Instead of living for our moment and make sure someone else has a moment, the hope we give is life changing. What is hopes name? It's yours if you want it to be.
There is a hope though that goes beyond any hope we can give. It's origin began before the sun was ever lit, before the stars were ever hung, before the first breath was given to Adam. There is a hope that is stronger than any raging river, a hope that is deeper than the deepest canyon, a hope that is wider than any ocean. This hope has been made available at a cost that we can't comprehend. This hope takes a broken, twisted life and gives it purpose and direction. It takes the gutter dweller and changes their desires from the crude, rude, and sociably unacceptable to becoming one that loves the holy, the pure, and the righteous. This hope stands patiently, waiting for us to fall into His arms of acceptance and forgiveness, giving us a chance to live like we never thought we could live, do what we thought we could never do, and love like we never thought we could love. What's hopes name...His name is Jesus.