Keep Hope Alive

With the recent tragedies surrounding the death of loved ones by suicide, I began to weep over the lives that were gone too soon. It took me to a place of thanksgiving and worship unto God for what he had done for me. Hope, found in Christ.

“And now abideth faith, hope, charity, these three; but the greatest of these is charity.” - 1 Corinthians‬ ‭13:13‬ ‭

When this passage of scripture is mentioned, it describes what love is and how great it is for our lives today. What about hope? It is mentioned along side of love and faith. Today, I want to focus on hope.

I had reached a low place when my three oldest boys were toddlers. I felt like life was too much and there was nothing I could do to change it. I looked at their faces and believed they would be in a much better situation if I was out of the picture. I believed that I had failed them and there was no hope for me. I thought they would have a chance to live if I was not around.

At that moment, all hope was gone. Hope was no longer alive for me. It wasn’t until I made a phone call to my mom that she was able to help me see that there was still hope and my life could change if I would believe and keep hope alive. Back then I did not understand this hope she spoke of, but today I can truly say I know of this hope.

His name is Jesus Christ.

The definition of hope is a feeling of expectation and desire for a certain thing to happen. Hope is about looking forward to something that has been spoken or promised with expectation. Expectation means a strong belief that something will happen or in the near future.

When we lose hope or allow our hope to die, we have lost a sense of expecting things to be different based upon the past or what we see during the present. Hope dies when we believe the life we are living will never change for the better.

Honestly, we believe quite the opposite. Depending on where our hope is fixed will determine how long we hold on to seeing the promise or desire come to pass. We can’t stop expecting because expectation gives us something to look forward to.

Hope gives us strength to keep our eyes ahead.

We do not get stuck at the place where we are or what has happened to us before. Many have become weak because of the battles we face daily. One thing we must do is forget those things which are behind us.

“I don’t depend on my own strength to accomplish this; however I do have one compelling focus: I forget all of the past as I fasten my heart to the future instead.” - Philippians 3:13 TPT

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We must remember that our Father in heaven has given us a promise and he cannot lie. His word will not return unto him void. To keep hope alive it requires total trust and dependence on Him.

“Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; And lean not unto thine own understanding." - Proverbs‬ ‭3:5‬ ‭KJV‬‬

Trust is defined as a firm belief in the reliability, abilities, truth, or strength of a person.

When we say we trust God, we are standing firm in our belief that he is reliable, strong enough, truthful, and can assist us with whatever we need. Trust relieves me of the pressure to produce thus reducing my stress level.

When I lose hope, I am losing my ability to trust in my Father. When we trust someone, we expect to receive whatever has been promised. Our confidence is in them and we can rest knowing they are taking care of the problem we have. This confidence is faith in action because faith is rest. This is how our hope in Christ looks.

“being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ:” - Philippians‬ ‭1:6‬ ‭KJV

When you stop expecting, you stop believing. When you stop believing, you stop trusting. When you stop trusting, you stop loving. When you stop loving, you no longer have the faith to continue on.

Above all is love, but hope brings love and faith together.

Christ is our hope. If he is alive, so is hope!!