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As the first theme in Advent is Hope, I thought I would share an excerpt from my upcomming book The Hope Quilt: 30 Devotionals About Hope set to release Summer 2023.
Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see. Hebrews 11:1 NIV
There are a lot of things that we hope for in life. On a daily basis, I hope my kids behave. I hope my quilts turn out beautiful. I hope we have enough money to pay the bills. I hope dinner tastes good. Our lives are filled with hope. Unfortunately, those hopes sometimes go unfulfilled. The kids fight. What was a good idea on paper does not look good with fabric. We have to dip into savings to make it through the month. Dinner gets burnt. Does it stop us from hoping that next time our wishes will be fulfilled? No, but we may approach the situation with less confidence next time.
My husband is a police officer. Over and over again, people I encounter say things like, "that’s a dangerous job, don't you worry?", or "Wow, how do you not worry about him everyday?" The fact is… I don't worry. I'm fully aware that he faces life-threatening danger everyday… I should feel some kind of worry… right? I don't feel one ounce of worry. Why? I have a hopeful confidence that my husband goes to work each day with the intention of coming home each night. My confidence in this hope had never been shaken, in fact, many times it has been strengthened with every night that he does come home, and every story he shares of how he makes sure he comes home. There is nothing that can shake that, almost unnatural, confidence. Some might even call it… faith.
Life is full of hopes that go unfulfilled, but when we have hope in something that is so unshakeable that is seems unnatural… it becomes faith. Faith is the outcome of unshakeable hope, and unshakeable hope is built over time through our relationship with God and the trials we face (See Romans 5:3-4). What follows in Hebrews 11 is the author's attempt to build hopeful confidence by outlining all the ways that God has fulfilled his promises to the Israelites. I encourage you to read Hebrews 11, then take a moment and think of all the ways that God has shown up in your life. Can you find the beginning of your own Hebrews 11 chapter?
I don't deny the fact that one day I might get a phone call from the department telling me to come to the hospital… but my unshakeable hope and faith is in one stronger than death. God's promises aren’t for this earthly life, but for a heavenly one. My faith in my husband's policing is miniscule to the faith I have in my heavenly Father. God will not fail me… or you. The outcome is unseen and unknown by us, but it is crafted by God. We can have faith, the greatest, unwavering hope of all, that God's plan is good and He will fulfill his promises to us when the time is right.
Thought to ponder: Are there things that you don't worry about? Why? Explore how you think and feel about those things. Do you feel that way about God?
Heavenly Father, forgive us for placing our hope in earthly things that fail us. Help us develop confident hope in You and Your plan. Turn that hope into faith, so that it will carry us through the trials in the earthly life to the glory of a heavenly one. Amen.
This is an excerpt from my upcoming book The Hope Quilt: 30 Devotionals About Hope set to release summer 2023. Make sure to subscribe or follow me on Facebook for the latest release details. Thank you for reading.
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