Hope is Courageous!

I saw that posted some where recently and it really got me to thinking. YES! To have HOPE really is a COURAGEOUS act . . .

Hope is defined as a feeling of expectation and desire for a certain thing to happen; a feeling that what is wanted can be had or the events will turn out for the best. Biblically, hope is defined as “a strong and confident expectation.” Essentially hope is an unwavering belief in something that has yet to be.

In today’s times of instant gratification and rampant skepticism, it can be difficult to maintain a message of hope. In seasons of despair, heartache, disappointment, and overwhelm, it can seem silly to maintain a  spirit of hope. When everyone around you says that it can’t be done because you aren’t capable, or aren’t enough, or are too old, or too unskilled, it can be almost painful to maintain an attitude of hope.  When life seems to be stacking up against you, when all seems to be going wrong and falling about around you, it may seem impossible to still believe in hope.

This is why hope IS courageous.

It takes courage to have hope when you get the diagnosis you feared most. It takes courage to have hope when your children go astray. It takes courage to have hope when the marriage vows have been broken. It takes courage to have hope when your business fails. It takes courage to have hope when you lose someone dear to you. It takes courage to have hope when you lose your home, your job, your security.  And yet, this is what we are called to do – to courageously have hope in all circumstances.

I am currently walking through a season where my “hope” is requiring me to be courageous.  There are some things in my life that don’t look the way I had expected them to.  There are particular situations which have me stretched well beyond my comfort zone and others which are presenting me with quite a few challenges. Yet, I choose to have hope.

As I wait for my circumstances to align with my confident expectation, I hold on to these words:

Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer. (Romans 12:12 ESV)

For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the  Lord , thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope. (Jeremiah 29:11 NKJV)

And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those  who are the called according to  His  purpose. (Romans 8:28 NKJV)

Because the reality is, I’ve been here before. I’ve walked through difficult circumstances. I have journeyed along rough paths. I have gone through seasons of uncertainty. Just like you have, too, I bet. And during each of these times, my hope has sustained me, my courage has propelled me, and ultimately everything worked out, many times even better than I had hoped for.

Whatever challenges you may be facing, know that it is only temporary. “This, too, shall pass.” So, while you walk through this particular season, hold on to hope – courageously!

Are there circumstances in your life where you have begun to give up hope? What scriptures, quotes, sayings can you use to remind yourself that there is still hope? How can you stand more courageously in that space?