Don’t Lose Hope

We will experience disappointment but we will always have joy available to us.

It seems that many of life’s joys are followed by disappointments. There is anticipation then letdown. We make plans and then life interrupts. Just today we were expecting a family outing to pick out a Christmas tree. We planned dinner with Grams and Grandad, decorating, and hot chocolate. The kids had been talking about it for days. Sadly, a few hours before said plans were to take place, my oldest daughter got her foot stepped on by a horse. Her foot was purple and swollen and couldn’t bear weight. I had to take her to the emergency department for x-rays. We had to wait a long time, and I texted my husband to have him go ahead and take the kids to get the tree without us. I didn’t want them to be disappointed! But he reminded me that his car was at the mechanic’s and they were stuck at home! Ugh! How could I have forgotten?  The little ones were pretty sad when they found out there would be no tree shopping tonight. And now my daughter is seated on the couch with her foot wrapped, raised, and iced. She had big plans to attend a horsemanship clinic tomorrow, but she won’t be riding or caring for any horses now. It is so troubling to have your hopes dashed. How disappointing!

Several of my friends have recently mentioned how discouraged they feel in this season. It is true - most of us have had a rough year with so many events cancelled, illness and unrest in our nation, job losses, and more. Sometimes the blows of life are too great and we become dismayed.  

We were never guaranteed this life would be one of ease and pleasure. But we have been promised hope. We have the hope of Jesus, the joy of knowing Him, not someday in the future but right now. We have the opportunity to walk alongside Him during the tough days, the grievous events, and the demanding seasons. We don’t need to give up during times of discouragement because of the peace found in His presence.

I love the Passion Translation of these verses found in 2 Corinthians 4:8-18. It says, “8 Though we experience every kind of pressure, we’re not crushed. At times we don’t know what to do, but quitting is not an option. 9 We are persecuted by others, but God has not forsaken us. We may be knocked down, but not out. We continually share in the death of Jesus in our own bodies so that the resurrection life of Jesus will be revealed through our humanity. 11 We consider living to mean that we are constantly being handed over to death for Jesus’ sake so that the life of Jesus will be revealed through our humanity. 12 So, then, death is at work in us but it releases life in you. 13 We have the same Spirit of faith that is described in the Scriptures when it says, “First I believed, then I spoke in faith.” So we also first believe then speak in faith. 14 We do this because we are convinced that he who raised Jesus will raise us up with him, and together we will all be brought into his presence. 15 Yes, all things work for your enrichment so that more of God’s marvelous grace will spread to more and more people, resulting in an even greater increase of praise to God, bringing him even more glory! 16 So no wonder we don’t give up. For even though our outer person gradually wears out, our inner being is renewed every single day. 17 We view our slight, short-lived troubles in the light of eternity. We see our difficulties as the substance that produces for us an eternal, weighty glory far beyond all comparison, 18 because we don’t focus our attention on what is seen but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but the unseen realm is eternal.”

Our inconveniences here on Earth won’t last long in comparison to how long eternity is. All the hard stuff we go through, all the disappointments we endure produce a brightness or a condition in us that is a sort of beauty and gladness which doesn’t compare to any experience, no matter how positive. When we go through something difficult, it gives us an authority we didn’t have before. We carry a new saturation of the grace that only comes with the experience of knowing God during times of hardship.

We cannot waste our time focusing on our negative experiences. Those are the things seen. They are temporary. They are just here for the moment. They will go away. I like to repeat the age-old phrase, “This, too, shall pass.” We need to put our concentration on He who is without beginning or end. He has always been and always will be. This crazy year has not always been and it will certainly not always be. Neither will any politician or virus or systems or policies. Those are not the things in which we place our trust. Those are not what brings us hope or peace or joy. Jesus does. 

God is well-aware of the inconveniences and afflictions we encounter. He sees our exasperation. He responds by sending His Holy Spirit to us so we can experience His presence. And in His presence is where we find fullness of joy. 

Don’t lose hope, dear friend. Whatever has dampened your joy this year, no matter how many bitter pills you’ve had to swallow, it is never too hopeless for Jesus to restore. Make Him your best friend and let Him renew you both now and for eternity.