Hope keeps people going. Hope keeps our dreams and desires
alive. Hope keeps us encouraged and excited. (Hebrews 6:18) Hope is the anchor
that keeps us secure and firmly rooted in what we believe to be the will of God
for our lives. Hope keeps us dreaming! Romans 5:5 tells us, "And
hope does not disappoint us because God has poured out His love into our hearts
by the Holy Spirit, whom He has given us." Yes, hope is the
anchor and hope is of God.
If hope is the anchor - How exactly does an anchor work? What is
the job of an anchor? The anchor on a boat is attached to a chain or rope. It
is dropped into the water and the weight of it causes it to fall the very
bottom. The boat is then put in reverse so that the anchor will lodge
itself securely into the ground at the bottom of the water. That is how it
works. But the job of the anchor is to keep the boat from drifting. It offers
the boat stability.
Hope does the same thing for us. Hope keeps us from drifting away
from what we long to be true for our future or for our present.
HOPE is Having Optimistic Persistent Expectations.
Hope keeps us secure and stable. When hope is lost, so is the
battle. Hope causes a person to make tough decisions for a better life.
Hope causes a person to keep fighting for a better marriage. Hope causes a
person to keep working on pulling weeds from that garden week after week. Hope
is the anchor that inspires our persistence - our perseverance. In 1 Thess. 1:3
we read, "We continually remember before our God and Father your
work produced by faith, your labor prompted by love, and your endurance
inspired by hope in our Lord Jesus Christ." Hope says to us -
just keep going, don't quit, don't stop believing.
The following story is kind of odd for a serious message, but here
goes…
We have 2 dogs. We try really hard to take them for a daily
'walk'. We don't always succeed, however. We can't even say the word 'walk'
around them or even use the word in a sentence about something totally
different without their ears immediately perk up and them getting all
excited. Besides that, the minute we start putting our shoes on, their tails
start wagging and they begin following us around the house from room to room as
if they are that little ball attached to a wooden paddle by an elastic stretchy
cord. We often ask ourselves how do they know we are going to take them
for a walk - we haven't said a word. Well, the answer is, they don't know for
sure, but they are hopeful. The hope of a walk keeps them from letting us out of
their sight for even a moment. The hope of a walk gets them all charged up.
Hope usually does not disappoint them. Hope keeps people all charged up with
expectancy, too!
Our dogs hope for a daily walk. People hope for other things - a
better job, a baby, a new house, a husband. It could be
anything. Hope is the anchor that keeps you from disbelief in what could
be or what will eventually be. Don't ever lose hope! Not ever!
"May the God of hope fill you with
all joy and peace as you trust in Him,
so that you may overflow with hope by the
power of the Holy Spirit."
Romans 15:13
"We have this hope as an anchor for
the soul, firm and secure." Hebrews 6: 19a
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