Faith is a sure confidence of things which are HOPED FOR, and a certainty of things which are not seen.
It is a sound psychological principle. People who have
no hope, people who have had their dreams beaten out of them by life, are
sicker, unhappier, and shorter lived than those who have hope and a future.
American Evangelicals have been taught that real faith consists in never taking
"no" for an answer. We have been promised that if we only believe we will always
achieve, that if we persist we will inevitably obtain. So we have very little
patience with deferred hopes. And yet the writer of the Hebrews tells us that
many of the great men and women of God "all died having not obtained the
promises and yet they nonetheless obtained God's favor because they continued to
believe that He was faithful who had promised." Surely some of these heroes of
faith experienced the sickness of heart that comes from deferred hopes.
Evidently, they learned how to move through this kind of "sickness."
Some may contend with God saying that this is a "setup" ..... All these
magnificent promises but we can't have them now..... we have to wait..... and
then again ..... we may never see those blessings or answers to prayer......The
tool of our arch enemy Satan is the same now as it was with Adam and Eve. The
enemy wants to plant a seed of doubt that somehow God intends to hold something
back from us, some blessing that we can enjoy for finding favor with God.
But the word..."but" is like however.... Another wise person may say "hold on now"........ That wisdom can only come from God who promises that..... Let any man (person-man or woman) who lacks wisdom, ask and God will grant generously and abundantly that person wisdom without criticizing that person for asking..... James 1:5
Now what can that person do with that gift of wisdom granted..... first he will remember that God has a plan for him..........."For I know the plans that I have for you, plans not for your calamity, but to prosper you and bless you, thus says the Lord.... The Psalmist says..... " Make the right sacrifice and trust in the Lord" Psalms 4:5.. What is the right sacrifice? The first right sacrifice is one of righteousness.... Saying no to sin and yes to Christ..... Romans 12:1 says present you bodies a living sacrifice....... The second right sacrifice is one of praise and thanksgiving for every trial and test.... for every good blessing that came your way.... Can we say as Job did? "How can I accept all the good that God brought my way and not accept any bad that he allows?" So suffering is part is part of the plan to prosper.....
And that's not all. We are full of joy even when we suffer. We know that our
suffering gives us the strength to go on. The strength to go on produces
character. Character produces hope. And hope will never let us down. God has
poured His love into our hearts. He did it through the Holy Spirit, whom He has
given to us. Romans 5: 3-5
How many things we hope for in life do not happen as we had hoped! We always
have occasions to lose heart. Things in real life do not usually match the way
our imagination anticipates them. This is one of life's most important lessons,
learning to press on through our deferred hopes. No one's spirit can endure long
enough to achieve any truly important cause if he or she does not learn how to
deal with hopes that get deferred.
Hope deferred (put off or prolonged) is a weariness (a vexation to the mind, an
affliction to the soul, a sickness of heart); but when what is desired (that
which is prayed for) comes (the answer to prayer that comes - a longing
fulfilled), it is a tree of life (a realized source of power, our Savior).
Proverbs 13:12
Deferred hopes are unavoidable, in our current crisis and in life. We all must
live with dreams that never quite materialize. We all have plans that never get
off the ground. If we build our faith in God on the notion that if we serve Him
the right way and know the right things to say, we will always get exactly what
we want when we want it, our "faith" will not survive. Faith is not a sprint; it
is a marathon. It is "he that endures to the end" that will be saved. Endurance
is, among other things, about surviving deferred hopes.
"My soul, wait in silence for God only,
For my hope is from Him.
He only is my rock and my salvation,
My stronghold; I shall not be shaken."
Psalm 62:5,6
This character produces hope for your future, because you made it this far, &
you will continue for I AM with you to teach you. Your hope in Me will never
disappoint you
We have discovered our life's meaning -- we know that our lives have a purpose
and lasting worth -- all because we have been learning for the last many years
to deal with our deferred hopes. So yes, deferred hopes do make our hearts sick.
But, over time, how we deal with those deferred hopes seem to have the power to
make our souls well.
"The word of the Lord tested Joseph until the day appointed for his vision
(Joseph's dreams and hopes) to come to pass," the Psalm says.
I wonder if Joseph experienced any nights of despair in that prison? Surely he
must have! Somehow though, he learned how to make his despair temporary and his
hopes permanent. That's how he finally came to fill the place that God had been
preparing for him to fill all along.
You can do the same. Here are four practical steps you can take every day to
build a sure foundation of hope that will carry you through the storms of life:
1. Submit yourself to God. God is the source of our hope. Come to Him in
humility and He will restore you according to His plan to bless and prosper you
(1 Peter 5:6-7).
2. Strengthen your faith. Allow God's previously fulfilled promises to renew
your hope. God has given us written record of countless ways He has provided
hope for believers in centuries past. Look to these marvelous accounts for
renewal
(1 Chronicles 16:7-17)
.
3. Trust God's timing. Sometimes God answers our prayers and fulfills our hopes
quickly. At other times, for His own divine reasons, He allows us to wait.
Remember, it was through faith and patience that Abraham's hope was fulfilled.
4. Thank God today. Though it's arduous to rejoice as we wait for hopes to be
fulfilled, rejoicing enables God to perfect us in ways we are unable to see at
the time. And this kind of hope, purified in the crucible of waiting, and
sometimes suffering, "does not disappoint" (Romans 5:1-5).
As You Pray
Have you lost hope? You can regain lost hope, with Jesus' help. Right now, turn
to the Author of all hope and rest in Him. Make the right sacrifice and trust in
Him.... Contend with Him in prayer as Jacob did... God's covenant is for those
that have faith in Him as did Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob... and the Scripture
says for a thousand generations thereafter.....
Selah (think about it) Guard your
heart with all diligence, for from it flow the issues of life... Proverbs 4:23
Pray this prayer:
"Father, forgive me for not seeing You as You truly are. Please use Your Word to
encourage me. Help me to hide it in my heart. Let Your Holy Spirit direct me
moment-by-moment as I wait in the hope You have given me through our Lord Jesus
Christ. In Jesus' name. Amen."
God's Word on Hope
"This hope we have as an anchor of the soul, a hope both sure and steadfast"
(Hebrews 6:29a).
Scriptures for Study
Hebrews 6:10-19,
Romans 5:1-11 -- God's precious promise of hope
Job 13:13-16 -- Hopes' perseverance through trials
Psalm 33:13-22 -- Right and wrong objects of hope
Our Hope in God's support
2 Chr 16:9 - For the eyes of the LORD run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to
strongly support those whose hearts are loyal to Him ..... Selah (think about
it)
Psalm 25:1-11 -- Hope's source of strength