"For we are saved by hope: but hope that is seen is not hope: for what a man seeth, why doth he yet hope for?
But if we hope for that we see not, then do we with patience wait for it."
Romans 8:24-25
We are saved by hope. I love that. Sometimes bad things seem to pile up, and it gets looking pretty bleak. We know that if we put God first, things will work themselves out and that there is a happy ending waiting, but in the middle of the pile of bleakness, it is hard to remember that. And that's why I think that God sends us a ray of sunshine sometimes. Something else happens, out of the blue, that gives us hope about *something.* ... And that saves us, really, from the despair that is so tempting in times like that. The hope sustains us and keeps us going. And really, we don't need to see it... whether that particular possibility works out or not doesn't matter. The hope is the point, and we are reminded that God is in charge, and knows what we need.
We can't have perfect lives that work out just the way we want them to. First of all, our way is pretty stupid sometimes, and as we learn and grow, we realize how many scary things we have avoided by not getting our way. Secondly, it isn't just our individual free will involved, but the agency of all the people around us. God isn't going to force someone else to make certain choices in order to make us happy... just like he won't force *us* to make the choices that lead to happiness. We are free to make the bad choices if we want to, because the point is learning to *want* the good, and to freely choose happiness. It's like the whole "give a man a fish" idea. If we don't learn to do it ourselves, we haven't learned independence and how to make the same choices and sustain ourselves. God is teaching us how to eventually be his peers, not his underlings. In Corporate America we might say he is "grooming us for management." :) And lastly, if life were always smooth and good, we wouldn't learn how to deal with obstacles. We wouldn't learn any patience, perseverance, or faith. And, as we know, faith can move mountains. :)
Today, let's have faith in God, and take hope as it comes. Let's allow it to remind us that God is in charge, and that he can, and will, do miracles in our lives. Let's try to shake off the bleakness, do the best we can in our present circumstances, and wait patiently for whatever adventure God has in store. :)
But if we hope for that we see not, then do we with patience wait for it."
Romans 8:24-25
We are saved by hope. I love that. Sometimes bad things seem to pile up, and it gets looking pretty bleak. We know that if we put God first, things will work themselves out and that there is a happy ending waiting, but in the middle of the pile of bleakness, it is hard to remember that. And that's why I think that God sends us a ray of sunshine sometimes. Something else happens, out of the blue, that gives us hope about *something.* ... And that saves us, really, from the despair that is so tempting in times like that. The hope sustains us and keeps us going. And really, we don't need to see it... whether that particular possibility works out or not doesn't matter. The hope is the point, and we are reminded that God is in charge, and knows what we need.
We can't have perfect lives that work out just the way we want them to. First of all, our way is pretty stupid sometimes, and as we learn and grow, we realize how many scary things we have avoided by not getting our way. Secondly, it isn't just our individual free will involved, but the agency of all the people around us. God isn't going to force someone else to make certain choices in order to make us happy... just like he won't force *us* to make the choices that lead to happiness. We are free to make the bad choices if we want to, because the point is learning to *want* the good, and to freely choose happiness. It's like the whole "give a man a fish" idea. If we don't learn to do it ourselves, we haven't learned independence and how to make the same choices and sustain ourselves. God is teaching us how to eventually be his peers, not his underlings. In Corporate America we might say he is "grooming us for management." :) And lastly, if life were always smooth and good, we wouldn't learn how to deal with obstacles. We wouldn't learn any patience, perseverance, or faith. And, as we know, faith can move mountains. :)
Today, let's have faith in God, and take hope as it comes. Let's allow it to remind us that God is in charge, and that he can, and will, do miracles in our lives. Let's try to shake off the bleakness, do the best we can in our present circumstances, and wait patiently for whatever adventure God has in store. :)
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