This is a song about...hope...

I gave away one of my favorite cds, by one of my favorite song-writers, a long time ago. The details of why I gave it away or who I gave it to aren't important. The point is that I re-purchased the cd today, as well as the most recent cd by the same artist, Sara Groves. I know that Sara would not want me to dwell on her, or her songwriting because I know she wants the name of Jesus to be lifted above all else.

Something about one of the songs on the album spoke to me and I believe it is something the Spirit is starting to expose to me...He may have been trying for some time now. The word that started with that song and continues forward through the Word itself has ramifications that I have yet to really even begin to understand. In 1 Corinthians 13 when Paul writes about love, it is kind of hard not to let some of the other terms he talks about get lost in all the talk about love. I'm not going to diminsh the term love, nor would I dare diminish love's purpose. However, there is another term in this passage that merits great attention. This term is something that these verses state love always does. Love always hopes.

Hope.

I can't believe how useless this term has become in my vocabulary. I'm more often to say that I hope Auburn wins a football game, than I am to cry out for hope in Christ and the coming glory of God. Looking at the apathy that has scratched my soul in the past few years, I can now put my finger on a vast abscence of hope. A void lacking anticipation. Joyful hope has been replaced with cautious optimism, and cautious optimicism with an almost cynical doubt.

Yet here it is, the word hope. On this evening of rest with my wife, the word hope dares ring in the voice of this songwriter. Though she says plenty of other things, the phrase, "This is a song about...hope..." is the phrase that gets me up to write. She said 'hope' and the Spirit spoke to me, "Now these three remain: faith, hope and love".

When I look at life's circumstances, its hard for me to put into practice the principle of being anxious for nothing. Tough times can hit every aspect of existence, and I find what keeps me apathetic and unexcitied about the amazing potential for God's glory being revealed, is a lack of hope. Hope should be bigger within my heart and not just some religious substitution for the word 'wish'. We're not wishing on a star here, we're hoping in the Son of God. Who cares if it looks like someone we know will never change? Nothing is impossible with God. (Luke 1:37) Who cares if it looks like work's challenges can never be overcome? We are more than conquerors through Christ. (Romans 8:37) So what if it appears that our fears will come true? Perfect love drives out all fear. (1 John 4:18) And love always hopes.

Lord, I thank you for a new revelation of hope. Please keep showing me what it means to hope in You and what that means in the midst of everything going on around us. You are so good to bring the news of hope to us. When your Spirit comes, the excitement that fills my being is overwhelming. Surely in your presence there is fullness of joy. We love you Jesus.