I hate to admit this, but I am forever falling down. I can trip on the crack in the sidewalk or have the tiniest pebble roll my ankle and BOOM! down I go. And mind you, it is the most ungraceful thing to watch. My family wonders if there is something wrong with me—vertigo perhaps. I think it is just lack of coordination because usually I have something I am carrying in my arms and not paying attention to where I am walking.
The thing about me falling is I don’t drop the item I am holding onto. I just cling to that thing for dear life. I. Don’t. Let. Go.
We all have something we hold onto, trinket or heirloom from a loved one that is no longer here, a favorite pair of earrings, that ratty old sweatshirt that should have been tossed two years ago. Something that gives us comfort. And we think if we discard those items, we won’t have anything to hold onto. Oh, but dear ones, we do.
We have the Author of Hope to hold on to. Jesus Christ. He is faithful. He won’t let us fall when we trip on the sidewalk crack or step on a tiny pebble. All we have to do is hold unswervingly—staying on the neatly groomed path He has provided for us—not going willy-nilly on the rabbit trails that lead nowhere.
Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for He who promised is faithful. Hebrews: 10:23 (NIV)
I spoke to someone this week who is battling cancer. The cancer is concentrated in several of spots. The doctor recommended high chemo treatments for it.
The thing is, even though the cancer is only in a couple of spots, the doctor wants to make sure the chemo goes completely through her body so that it attacks any sign of cancer anywhere in her body.
My friend had a scan and it showed the chemo is working and the cancer is retreating. Good News! Such Good News!!
Being skeptical of the doctor giving her high doses of chemo was on option for my friend. She could have told him just to give her enough so that it kept the cancer at the level it was, not getting worse, but not getting better either.
Instead, she made the decision to trust the doctor and get the recommended treatment and kick cancer’s butt—the reward for her decision was Good News!
This is the week pointing to Jesus, God’s only Son, and the love He has for each of us, no matter what you believe. The Bible says, “… that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that He was buried, that He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures…” (1 Cor. 15:3 NIV)—the Good News!
We have the same decision when it comes to Christianity and the Good News of Jesus Christ and the eternal life He offers. We can look at Jesus’ death on the cross, the three days in the grave and the resurrection skeptically and just keep our lives at the same level, neither here nor there and live with the cancer of sin—bad news. OR we can believe in the Good News and have the cancer of our sin dissolved by Christ.
I’m not much for bad news, so I think I will accept the recommended treatment and the Good News!
Last spring, we decided to redo our front yard flowerbeds. My husband and daughter made these nice wooden rectangle containers to sit on top of some decorative rocks and we planted some succulents in them.
I was pretty hopeless they would make it through the winter. Temperatures plummet below zero frequently from December through February. Succulents usually live in places that never dip below freezing, plus we had planted them above ground in boxes where the cold could go completely through.
I didn’t have much hope of seeing them again this spring.
The other day, I decided I would do a walk around yard since the weather has warmed up a little. I could see bits of green grass poking through. The trees are warming up and the sap is starting to flow causing small leaf buds to appear. And because curiosity got the best of me, I sauntered over to my rectangle succulent planters and peered in, not expecting much.
It was like someone gave me a surprise party, underneath the leaves that collected in the top of the planters last fall, I found beautiful peach and burgundy “rose” buds of succulents.
It gave me hope when I thought there was none.
There seems to be a current of hopelessness running a muck these days. Feeling hopeless when we go to the grocery store, hopeless we can keep this “invisible enemy” at bay.
But underneath the leaves of hopelessness, there is an answer if you are willing to look. It’s God’s Word. He is the Author of hope. He is the Divine Encourager of our hearts if we are willing to spend some time in His Word.
Jesus give us a promise of hope when He tells His disciples in John 16:33 (NIV), “I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.”
What in the world? Really?!? I mean, one day we are just going about being neighbors and friends and family and BAM!, out of nowhere this thing comes. It just whipped its ugly head right out of nowhere and shows up in our homes taking over everything normal.
Causing parents to be the teacher of academics when it is not in their skillset, causing employees to use caution at their jobs, causing all of us to question whether we are doing enough to keep things sanitized that come from outside our space.
You have to understand, I am not a news watcher. Never have been. For me, it is too depressing and way too political. I just let my husband tell me what is going on in the rest of the world. This spares me all of the unwanted negativity of someone else’s opinion. Good or bad that’s how I am.
So here I am, over here in my little corner in the middle of nowhere, trying to process it all; physically, emotionally, and spiritually.
Physically has been fairly easy. I am an introvert, so limited interaction doesn’t bother me so much. My husband is exactly the opposite, he needs that outside connection so he is on the phone-A LOT!
Emotional processing has been a bit harder. We are empty nesters and our children are scattered right now. I cancelled a trip to go see one of them and the other one is in military training and doesn’t know if he will be able to get back to his wife anytime soon.
Spiritually—let’s get right to the heart. Where is my hope in all of this?
First of all, let’s define hope: • Merriam Webster Dictionary—a feeling that what is wanted will happen
• Biblical definition—trustful expectation; the anticipation of a favorable outcome under God’s guidance; confidence that what God has done for us in the past guarantees our participation in what God will do in the future.
In order for me to process all the things, I need to have my heart in the right place. Sure, you and I can hope—make a statement and believe that what I/we want to happen will happen. But really? How many times have I/we done that and it works? If you are anything like me, it doesn’t happen without a lot of manipulating on my part. I lose, roughly, every time. Why? Because it is based on something this imperfect human being has to do.
The other option is the hope that “what God has done for us in the past guarantees our participation in what God will do in the future.” I win every time. Why? Because my hope isn’t based on something I have to do or manipulate, it is based on a perfect God. And we all have a story we can share of what God has done for us in the past.
I have had this written on a note card for years hanging in my bathroom— “Never be afraid to trust an unknown future to a known God.” –Corrie Ten Boom
So, dear sister, as you sit in your space today, remember what God has done for you and cultivate that in your heart.
It’s one o’clock in the morning and I am writing my first blog post. I know it doesn’t seem like a big deal to most people, but to me it is almost life-changing. You see, this step has been in the making for almost a year.
I have been wrestling with a blog name, wrestling with who my readers will be, wrestling with the fact that maybe no one can relate. But TODAY, I made the decision that there are those who will be able to relate and there are those who will undoubtedly need hope just like I do and my hope is that you will be able to cultivate a heart of hope along with me.
So if you have made it this far, please hit that subscribe button below and continue with me on this journey!
Kim Blain 