To Hope

 Hope

The word “hope” is spoken (in my opinion), throughout the world millions of times each day. How often do each of us say things like, “I hope I get a raise; I hope I can get that new car;. I hope my team wins; I hope he or she doesn’t leave; I hope you get well soon; I hope it snows and so we are hoping for something either verbally or in our thoughts throughout the day. Much of what we hope for is for real needs, and many of our hopes are for things that we don’t need or for things that will cause us harm if they become reality. Some of our hopes are fantasies, the things we know we will never get. Some hopes are selfish, many are for the good of others, some are lustful and they consume our thoughts night and day. Hopes are either good, not so good, or dangerous. 

What should we hope for? I have found that the older I get the less I hope for things. My daughter sometimes ask me what I want for Christmas. I usually tell them to get me underwear. They don’t like that answer. What I am really saying is that there is nothing I need although I do like to get Christmas gifts. A wise person considers the purpose of their hopes, and what the likely outcome will be if his hopes come about. I have often been told, “Be careful what you hope for.” That is great advice for all of us. I wish I had taken this advice more often than I did when I was younger. 

There is nothing wrong with hoping for that which will be good for others and good for ourselves. The Bible tells us that God will take care of our every need. However our greatest needs are not material but spiritual. If we know Jesus the word hope takes on a different meaning. Hope is not something we may or may not get. For us the word hope becomes that which is a sure thing. With much prayer we will be able to make wise decisions concerning what should be on our list of hopes. The hopes we are waiting for are unseen and eternal.

Read these three verses.

“So we don’t look at the troubles we can see now; rather, we fix our gaze on things that cannot be seen. For the things we see now will soon be gone, but the things we cannot see will last forever. 2 Corinthians” 4:18.

“I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in his holy people, Ephesians 1:18”