Hope Is In A Person

“Happy [is he] that [hath] the God of Jacob for his help, whose hope [is] in the LORD his God:” (Ps 146:5 AV)

We just discussed that happiness and fear are not disassociated.  They actually go together very nicely.  Now we see another source of happiness.  We see that the individual who has God as their hope for times of need is happy.  Those that rely on anything else may not be.  What strikes me as particularly helpful for this morning is happiness is hope in a person and not in circumstances.  This implies so much that space does not permit us to explore it all.  Suffice it to say that hope is in the person of God and not what He may or may not do.  Hope is not in our environment.  Hope is not in a change of circumstances.  Hope is not in what we think our future might be.  Hope is not in what our present circumstances are.  Hope I God transcends what life is or may be.  Hope in God is the foundation that guides us through and enables us to enjoy the good times and endure the trying times.  Hope in the LORD is what places all others’ concerns as a distant second place.  Hope in the person of God gives patience, joy, and security.  Hope in the person of God keeps our eyes on the One who is our source of hope and does not obsess over what worries us.  Hope in the Person of God does not need an immediate answer to a physical problem.  Hope in the person of God is completely content with the fellowship with God even though troubles of life abound.  This whole thing of salvation truly is about a relationship, first and foremost.

Childhood can be difficult.  Grade School can be cruel.  I know it was so for me.  Grade School and High School almost did me in.  I was socially awkward.  I was athletically inept.  I was one of those kids who was the target for everyone else.  I dreaded school.  My mother took me to the doctors and hospitals for many tests when bullying was the root cause.  That was me.  There are many children like that.  They often suffer in silence.  But there is one influence that makes childhood much easier to bear.  And involved parent, especially a father, can make all the difference in the world.  Home was my sanctuary.  Home was where all that threatened me could not touch me.  Having a father who understands and empathizes is the fuel that gets that child through his hard times.  A walk down the block with Dad, a fishing outing with father, or undergoing a project together can often be the difference between that child’s mental or spiritual health, and he or she doing great harm to Self.  Dad cannot remove the bully.  Dad cannot give his son athletic ability.  What Dad can do is to be there for him, so when his child needs the strength which he does not possess, Dad is there to lend it.  Dad cannot make all the monsters disappear.  Sometimes those monsters are works of the child’s own imagination and experience are the only thing that will slay them.

I have noticed that a common theme expressed in churches, communities, etc. is hope.  Whether placed in the wrong object like a human leader, government, or a social cause, it seems the need for hope is a genuine need.  It seems our world is grasping for good news.  Trouble surrounds us on every side.  Our governments are failing.  Threats to our health are prevalent.  Our pocketbooks are shrinking.  Our freedoms face constant assault.  It seems like hope is the one thing we can say we need the most.  But hope in anything other than the person of God will be short-lived at best.  Most of the time, those things in which we look to for hope never can bring hope.  Mu wife and I watch NET cancer videos most nights.  We will watch NETRF videos or videos from our favorite specialists.  These videos are very encouraging.  There are exciting treatments on the horizon and that which is available right now is a far cry from what was available twenty years ago.  Those diagnosed with NET cancer have every reason to be hopeful.  But our hope should be in the person of God.  Regardless of what the next two decades bring, God never changes nor does He abandon us.  If we have lost, or are losing, hope, then our strength does not lie in the person of God.  It lies in things of this world which will eventually fail.  Keep your eyes on the Father and let Him be your source of hope.  Then and only then can we be truly happy.