Hope

Optimism says “It’s not so bad!” Hope admits “Yes, it’s bad. Really bad. But I still believe & trust in God!”, Rick Warren

People say all the time that we should be more optimistic. Optimistic about the weather, the economy, our jobs, our families, & the Packers. But the tendency with optimism is that it suggests we should pretend that our current situations really don't exist. And if we do acknowledge them, we are in some way pessimistic or lack faith. That's mindset is just silly.

If you had the symptoms of asthma and it was confirmed by a doctor, is it logical or fair for me to say you lacked faith simply because you told me you had asthma? You are just stating one side of the facts. Optimism tries to get us to deny the facts. Hope on the other hand accepts the facts, but understands the facts are only part of the story. Hope not only sees the problem, but more importantly, hope sees the answer. You can be optimistic about your cancer diagnosis, but that doesn't change the fact that you still have cancer. But hope not only accepts the diagnosis it recognizes that there is a solution that is bigger than the problem.

Hope only works when it's placed in a reliable source. And the only truly reliable source is God. As you go through this next week, it's ok to identify your life situations. But realize that your hope is firmly established in a God who is bigger, greater, and better than all your problems.

Psalm 25:5 You are God my Savior, and my hope is in you all day long.
Psalm 31:24 Be strong and take heart, all you who hope in the LORD.
Psalm 33:20 We wait in hope for the LORD; he is our help and our shield.
Psalm 62:5 Find rest, O my soul, in God alone; my hope comes from him.
Psalm 71:14 But as for me, I will always have hope; I will praise you more and more.