Healthy HOPE

What is hope?  The world defines hope as wishful thinking, hoping that something will happen, and leads us to believe it is something we can conjure up.  But the Bible says hope is "confident expectation" and talks of both an eternal hope and a hope for the "here and now".  Hope is mentioned 135 times in the Bible.  Because of things happening in our world, I decided to encourage myself by doing a word study on hope.  Perhaps someone reading this needs this encouragement as well.

First, we all need hope because "hope deferred makes the heart sick." (Prov. 13:12) and we want healthy hearts!  Hope is directly connected to joy and Rom. 12:12 talks of rejoicing in hope.  Prov. 17:22  says that a joyful heart is good medicine, but a broken spirit dries up the bones.  Prov. 10:28 says that the hope of the righteous is gladness.  There you have it!  Without hope we have heart attacks and osteoporosis to name just two.  Our physical health is tied to hope.  With depression and suicides running rampant in our nation, maybe a fresh look at hope will clarify the picture for us.

Let's start by looking at what hope is not.  1 Tim. 6:17 instructs us not the put our hope in riches. "Instruct those who are rich in this present world not to be conceited or to fix their hope on the uncertainty of riches, but on God, who richly supplies us with all things to enjoy."  When we put our hope in people, they will disappoint us because they cannot provide our needs either.  This seems to be saying that the world cannot be our source of hope, especially in these tumultuous times when circumstances are shifting on a daily basis.

“Hopelessness is the absence of all herbs and flavors in your life.  Everything about life turns tasteless and colorless.  If you believe the lie that you have no choice, hopelessness will make your heart sick.” (From Junk or Joy)

The Bible says "hope that is seen is not hope" so hope is for future events that have not unfolded yet.  The Bible defines what hope is in Phil. 1:20.  Hope is "my earnest expectation". Job 11:18  "Then you would trust, because there is hope; and you would look around and rest securely."  Hope here means that you can trust the rug will not be pulled out from under you!  Christians understand that we have an eternal hope in Jesus that we will go to heaven when we die, but do we realize that Jesus is also our hope in the "here and now" of daily life--an anchor to our soul, sure and steadfast?  (Heb. 6:19).  The scriptures below speak of our eternal hope and our daily hope.

ETERNAL HOPE:

Titus 2:13 speaks of "looking for the blessed hope and the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior Christ Jesus."  

Titus 3:7 says, "that being justified by His (Jesus) grace we might be made heirs according to the hope of eternal life."    

Acts 24:15 "having a hope in God, which these men cherish themselves, that there shall certainly be a resurrection of both the righteous and the wicked."

Titus 1:2  in the hope of eternal life which God, who cannot lie, promised long ages ago...

Titus 3:7  that being justified by His grace we might be made heirs according to the hope of eternal life.

Col. 1:5  because of the hope laid up for you in heaven, of which you previously heard in the word of truth, the gospel...

1 Thess 2:19  For who is our hope or joy or crown of exultation?  Is it not even you, in the presence of our Lord Jesus at His coming?

HOPE IN THE HERE AND NOW:

2 Cor 1:10  TPT He has rescued us from terrifying encounters with death.  And now we fasten our hopes on Him to continue to deliver us from death yet again

Heb 6:18-20  so that by two unchangeable things in which it is impossible for God to lie, we who have taken refuge would have strong encouragement to take hold of the hope set before us. This hope we have as an anchor of the soul, a hope both sure and steadfast and one which enters within the veil, where Jesus has entered as a forerunner for us, having become a high priest forever according to the order of Melchizedek.  

1 Tim 1:1 Christ Jesus, our living hope

1 Thess 1:3 steadfastness of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ

Rom 4:18 there is a "hope against hope" (hope against all odds)

Rom 5:5 hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out within our hearts through the Holy Spirit who was given to us.

Eccl. 9:4  For whoever is joined with all the living, there is hope. . .

1 Cor 13:13  But now abide faith, hope, and love, these three; but the greatest of these is love.

Col 1:27  to whom God willed to make known what is the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory.

Hope is connected to many good things, joy and trust being mentioned already.  Hope is also connected to faith which is important because without faith it is impossible to please God.

Heb 11:1  Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.

Rom 8:24-5  For in hope we have been saved, but hope that is seen is not hope; for who hopes for what he already sees? But if we hope for what we do not see, with perseverance we wait eagerly for it.

Heb 11:6  And without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who seek Him.

Heb. 10:23  Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful.

Rom 4:20-21 (connected to faith)  with respect to the promise of God, he (Abraham) did not waver in unbelief, but grew strong in faith, given glory to God, and being fully assured that what He had promised, He was able to perform.

Hope is connected to our future and our destiny.  We have already seen that hope is in the future because it is for things you cannot see yet.  Our destiny is also future or ongoing in our life.

Jere 29:11  ‘For I know the plans that I have for you,’ declares the Lord, ‘plans for welfare and not for calamity to give you a future and a hope.’ 

Jere 31:17  There is hope for your future, declares the Lord.

Prov. 23:18  Surely there is a future and your hope will not be disappointed.

Prov. 24:14  Wisdom is sweet to your soul; if you find it, you will have a bright future, and your hope will not be cut off.

Eph 4:4  There is one body and one Spirit, just as also you were called in one hope of your calling...

Eph 1:18  I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened, so that you may know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints

If hope is confident expectation for the unseen things and it is tied to our joy, health, faith and destiny; where does true hope come from?

Rom 15:4 TPT The Scriptures impart to us encouragement and inspiration so that we can live in hope and endure all things.

Rom 15:13  Now may the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing that you may abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.

Lam 3:22-24 The faithful love of the Lord never ends, His mercies never cease.  They are new every morning; Great is Your faithfulness.  “The Lord is my portion,” says my soul,“Therefore I have hope in Him.”

2 Thess 2:16  Now may our Lord Jesus Christ Himself and God our Father, who has loved us and given us eternal comfort and good hope by grace, comfort and strengthen your hearts in every good work and word.

Ps. 62:5  NLT Let all that I am wait quietly before God, for my hope is in Him.

Ps. 71:5  For You are my hope; O Lord God, You are my confidence from my youth.

Yes, true hope has been given to us by God our Father, Jesus Christ, and the Holy Spirit and our hope is in Him, from Him, and by Him.  But do we have any responsibility in walking in this hope?  If we did not have some responsibility, we would all be walking in amazing hope instead of depression and hopelessness.  What is our responsibility in order to receive this "eternal comfort and good hope by grace"?

1 Tim. 4:10  fix our hope on the living God, who is the Savior of all men,

1 Peter 1:13 TPT So then, prepare your hearts and minds for action!  Stay alert and fix your hope firmly on the marvelous grace that is coming to you.

Ps. 71:14  But as for me, I will hope continually, and will praise You yet more and more.

Ps. 42:5, 11 and 43:5 all say combined:  Why are you in despair, O my soul?  And why have you become disturbed within me?  Hope in God, for I shall again praise Him.  For the help of His presence, The help of my countenance and my God.

1 Peter 3:15  always being ready to make a defense to everyone who asks you to give an account for the hope that is in you, yet with gentleness and reverence

1 Thess. 5:16  Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, in everything give thanks; for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus.

James 1:5-6  But if any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all men generously and without reproach, and it will be given to him, but let him ask in faith without any doubting...

Jude 1:20-1 …build each other up in your most holy faith, pray in the power of the Holy Spirit, fast your hearts to the love of God and receive the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ…

1 Tim. 4:14 Do not neglect the spiritual gift you received…

2 Tim 1:7 Do not give into fear.  God has not given us a spirit of fear…

What have I learned from my HOPE study?  First that it is my job to strengthen myself in the Lord when hopelessness starts trying to crowd my mind and spirit.  Second, that praise and thanksgiving are really key to rising above despair and restoring joy.  I have chosen to fix my hope on the living God, by remembering and praising Him for who He is.  Then I make a Thankful list and just begin thanking Him for all He has already done in my life.  One day I was in such a state that I could not think of one thing the Lord had done for me in the last year, so I called someone I could trust not to get in the pit with me, but to help lift me out.  She started by telling me to be quiet when I started relaying all my woes to her.  Then she started praying, "Thank you, Lord, that Barbara can walk, that she got up this morning, that she can see and hear, that she . . . "  You get the point.  When it is more than you can do, call and get help.  She prayed in a steady stream of gratitude for almost 10 minutes and the despair started to lift and I could join her in being truly thankful!  Be very careful to not go too near what I call the "pity pot" lest you fall in!  Soon the Lord gave me "oil of gladness instead of mourning" (Is. 61:3).  I find scriptures to build myself up and ask Jesus to help me tie into His anchor or hope.  I feed myself positives and stay away from negatives.  When I don’t know how to pray, I ask the Holy Spirit and Jesus to intercede for me.

Two things to watch out for when trying to stay hopeful are not to interpret or add to what you think the Holy Spirit is saying and to hold all timing lightly.  When we hold too tightly to what we expect Jesus to do, we can miss what He is doing because we don’t recognize it.  This is what the Pharisees did—they missed Jesus because they thought He would rescue them from the Romans.   When you expect something to happen by a certain date and it doesn’t, it is hard to keep from spiraling into hopelessness.   

Hope is like the herbs of life.  A little spice sprinkled here and there brings out the rich flavors and colors that make both food and life more pleasing.  In the same way, Jesus helps you make choices about how your heart and spirit respond, even when you cannot change your physical situation.  (Excerpt from Junk or Joy)

Dutch Sheets wrote a book called The Power of Hope and one of my big take-aways from it was his quote, "Tell your heart to hope again."

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