“Why are you downcast, O
my soul? Why so disturbed within me? Put your hope in God for I will yet praise
him, my Savior and my God” (Psalm 43:5 NIV).
Do you need hope right now? Is your soul
downcast? Hope in God.
The Bible is filled with
men and women who displayed hope in difficult times. That is why it is so
important to read the Old and New Testaments. It is filled with hope. I am
going to give you a few examples.
First,
Abraham was told by God that a great nation was to come from him. Abraham and
his wife had hope that God would give them a child. They had to wait 25 years
before their son, Isaac, would be born.
Joseph
had to wait in prison for several years before he was freed. He had hope that
God would be with him and He was. “But while Joseph was there in the prison,
the Lord was with him; he showed him kindness and granted him favor in the eyes
of the prison warden. So the warden put Joseph in charge of all those held in
the prison..” (Genesis 39:20-22 NIV). When he was freed Pharaoh put him in
charge of the whole land
of Egypt. Joseph’s hope
in God helped him through a very bad trial, and in the end Joseph was blessed.
Mary and Martha had hope that Jesus could
raise Lazarus from the dead. They believed in Him and knew He could do anything.
Martha said, “But I know that even now God will give you whatever you ask”
(John 11:21 NIV). Jesus
proceeded to raise Lazarus from the dead to prove that He indeed is the
resurrection and the life. Do you have this hope?
You see we are to believe that nothing is
impossible with God and have hope that He will be there for us in every
circumstance of our lives. He will always be there for you if you call upon Him
to help you.
I think it would be wise
to memorize this verse and have hope in the future. “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” (Romans 15:13 NIV).
Dear Lord,
Give us hope that you will
be with us, even in the dark times. We know that you are in control and we must
surrender everything over to you and have faith that you know what is best for
us. Thank you for the peace only you can give.
In Jesus’ name,
Amen
