Our pastor shared about hope this morning and that it is not based on our government or in celebrities....he challenged us to find hope for 2017 as we...
Hear God's Voice
Obey God's Word
Pray in God's Power
Embrace God's Plan
I have been having some difficulties as I try to envision the year ahead with hope. There is a circumstance I am in that is extremely discouraging to me and can make me feel hopeless or helpless as I have come to realize there is nothing I can physically do to fix it....but I can wait and pray for God to work. But, I have also realized that my hope is not anchored in that circumstance. I am not fully there yet with my head and my heart agreeing on this and how to respond all the time, but my mind knows it. I think when you face something that you have always feared in your heart of hearts, it challenges you to evaluate where you are drawing your strength and hope and, if you have it placed in things or people, it shakes you and forces you to make a very healthy, hard, ultimate choice to place your trust in God and to surrender this great fear and the outcome to Him. It transforms your fear into a testimony of your faith....and that is a victory even if the circumstance doesn't change.
I took some time this morning and really prayed that my hope would be anchored in the right place for 2017. I asked God to strengthen my faith and give me hope as I wait for my prayers to be answered.
Then my family ate out at Culvers and I had something strange happen....as I was sitting there a woman who was sitting behind me reached from behind and with a strong grip....grabbed my back and shoulder. It shocked me...and we found out she is intellectually disabled....not sure what triggered the behavior. Her parents were with her and were apologizing for what had happened, but they moved to a different location in the restaurant because they didn't want to her to do it again. They said she had never done that before. As we were leaving the restaurant we wanted to pass by them again and just assure them that everything was okay and not to worry about the incident. We asked for the young woman's name and they said her name is HOPE.
Why did Hope reach out and grab me?....haha....there are certainly interesting things that happen....as I left I just had to smile thinking about how God wants to show us He is with us and He is working!
There is a song....it talks about new beginnings and who really carries us through it all....who will never let us go. It is played frequently, but it definitely resonates with me.
Tell Your Heart To Beat Again
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=azYK8I2uoog
