This week at Becoming More we are focusing on becoming more hopeful. Webster defines hope as a feeling of expectation and desire for a certain thing to happen. It is good for us to anticipate good things to happen and to expect the best, but sometimes we are reluctant to have this hope because past experiences have taught us not to.
What has diminished your hope? Where are you weary? What has resulted in you being hesitant to expect a different outcome? What has robbed you of hope and replaced it with doubt? It can be fearful to hope. It can be risky to hope. It’s an investment with an uncertain return; a key to a door with the unknown on the other side.
It’s hard when our past experiences and circumstances have instructed us to cling to something other than hope, but before we go any further, I have a question for you. What does the word hope mean to you? Really think about it for a minute.
I don’t know about you, but I feel like our tendency is to use the words hope and wish interchangeably. When I think of what I hope for, I often think of things I wish I had. I think of circumstances I’d like to see in my life or something I’d really like to happen. If we realign and refocus our hope and place it in God rather than in what we want Him to do for us, that is when we’d truly experience hope the way that He intended.
The Bible teaches us that hope is the confident expectation of what God has promised. It shows us that the strength of hope is found in God’s faithfulness. No matter what the world may tell us, hope is always available because of the one we place our hope in. Our everchanging circumstances don’t defeat our hope, because the source of our hope is much bigger, and much more consistent than our circumstances. His track record never faulters, never fails, and never disappoints.
In order to fully understand and grasp this concept, we must be willing to surrender the earthly things we wish for, no matter how big or small they are. These things could be anything from a promotion at work to wishing for a baby after multiple miscarriages; whatever disappointments you have experienced that you wish were different. We are called to place our hope in Him and not in them.
We know this is tough, so we want to start this week of Becoming More Hopeful off with a prayer. When you’re ready, we invite you to pray this prayer with us.
Dear God,
Thank you for your constant faithfulness. Thank you for your character that never changes. Thank you that you never fail. Please forgive me when I have placed my hope in things other than you. May I remember that you are where my hope comes from. May my longings and desires be found only in You. I surrender what I wish for over to you. I trust that you are working all things together for my good – for your glory. I can’t see the whole picture, but I’ve seen enough to know that no matter what, you are faithful. May my hope be reawakened to you this week. In Jesus’ name, Amen.