I’ve always said that I don’t want to live in a world that doesn’t believe in the power of hope. And I confess, sometimes I waiver. Sometimes I fall into the trap of believing that hope is synonymous for what Scott describes as, “wishful thinking”. Giving up can often be the easier route. I was sitting at my desk yesterday, back and forth with my thoughts and I came across this incredible devotional on proverbs31.org. As I read it, I felt like author, Carey Scott, perfectly captured my thoughts and feelings about having hope in what can often feel like a hopeless world. I’ve never connected with another devotional in quite the way that I connected with this one. And with that said, I choose hope. I choose to believe in the possibility. I choose to find the grit and grace to hold onto hope, even in the darkest of times. And at the end of the day, I choose to always find my way back to Christian hope, knit with God’s grace.
Hope: The Antidote to the Quitter Instinct
a devotional written by Carey Scott
Hope is a powerful motivator. It’s what drives us to try again. It’s what keeps us from sinking under the weight of adversity. Hope keeps us positive, fuels our joy and helps us reach for our dreams with gusto. Hope matters. And while many think hope is nothing more than wishful thinking, Christian hope means confident expectation. It’s believing in the possibility.
It takes hard-won grit and grace to hold on to hope in this world. Grit, because sometimes we’d rather give up than white-knuckle it. Aren’t there moments it would just be easier to throw in the towel? And we need grace for ourselves, because sometimes we don’t walk it out as well as we’d like. Holding on to hope is just plain hard — no matter how you slice it.
But listen in … if we’re going to live authentic lives — lives true to who we were made to be — then we need to remember hope is already part of our DNA. Because we’re created in God’s image, hope is already part of our blueprint. So while it can be challenging to grab onto hope and hold on, especially when life feels overwhelming, we can absolutely do it. We must do it. Friend, holding on to hope is part of what makes you, well, you. And it’s a beautiful benefit of being a Jesus-girl.
Romans 15:13 shows us hope is a powerful force: “I pray that God, the source of all hope, will infuse your lives with an abundance of joy and peace in the midst of your faith so that your hope will overflow through the power of the Holy Spirit.”
God created hope to intertwine with every part of life, which is why holding on to it makes all the difference. Letting go of hope is why we walk out of a hard marriage. It’s why we give up on a wayward child. Hopelessness is what makes us reject challenging friendships and step out of frustrating community groups. Losing hope is why we turn our backs on difficult family members, quit frustrating positions of leadership and let go of a dream that feels too far off. But God didn’t create us to be quitters.
We may feel the weight of the battle as we face discouragements in life. Breakdown moments will come because we are humans with emotions. But God created you to be a carrier of hope. And that means you can find the grit and grace to hold onto hope when the diagnosis comes, the relationship struggles, the finances dry up or you slide into the passenger seat with your teenager.
Let’s be warriors of hope to the world. Don’t worry. It’s already in you.
Dear God, sometimes holding on to hope feels too hard. While I know You gave me the ability to hope, it’s a difficult choice to make when I’m staring at overwhelming situations. Please ignite hope within me, and strengthen my bones with faith. I know that with Your help, I can hold on to hope in the darkest of times. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.
Psalm 39:7, “And so, Lord, my only hope is in you.”
Xoxo, Anna
