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Child of Hope

Some days, you just need to look across the table into the face of someone older and wiser. Some days, you just need the tender touch of a hand and a word of encouragement over a mug of strong Irish tea. Some days, you just need to be reminded....

I have been having some areas of dread lately. Things in my life that are making me feel anxious and overwhelmed. It occurred to me, after having a talk with a wonderful mentor in my life, that dread is just another word for apprehension and fear. Fear of the unknown mostly. 2 Timothy 1:7 says God did not give me this spirit of fear - He gave me a sound mind.

What I needed to be reminded of is that I am a child of hope. In Ephesians 1, Paul prays for his fellow believers and asks that they will KNOW the HOPE to which they are called. I am CALLED to hope!

One of the most inspirational passages on hope for me is in Lamentations chapter 3. But to truly get the full impact of Jeremiah's words here, you must read the whole chapter. In the beginning, Jeremiah talks of all the hardship and suffering he has done in his life. He says he has been made desolate and bitter. He is "bereft of peace". (ESV) Then, in verse 21, he says, "But this I call to mind and therefore I have HOPE." 

What does he call to mind? God is faithful. God's love is steadfast. God is merciful. 
"The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases, His mercies never end; they are new every morning; great is Your faithfulness. The Lord is my portion, says my soul, therefore, I WILL hope in Him." Lamentations 3:22-24
After all Jeremiah, the weeping prophet, had seen and been through, he still hoped in the Lord.

Will life be easy? Probably not. Will trials come? Assuredly so. Will the difficulties that threaten to overwhelm go away? Not likely. But the Lord is my portion, says MY soul. I WILL hope in Him.
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