But what about grown-ups? As we pass from the age of innocence and into a world often more difficult and less forgiving, we still place our aspirations somewhere. Daily living is usually hard enough, and then from time to time we also experience true suffering. If you haven’t experiencedthis loss or suffering yet, then go into your house, lock the door, and consider yourself lucky!
During our lulls when things aren’t so bad and we are going through day-to-day life, maybe some of us place our hope in material things like money, entertainment—or if we are a bit wiser—people and relationships. But what happens when things don’t go so well, and we find ourselves driving down the road less traveled, in a speeding car that we don’t want to be in?
I think that if our hope is misplaced during the quiet lulls, then it is that much harder to find God during the storms, when we really need Him. Why is this? Because often the fulfillment of hope comes from the partnership with God that occurs during the average everyday living, not only during the difficult times. God wants our attention all the time, not just when we are hurting.
When we pin our dreams and desires to material or natural things only, and these items finally do disappear (whether it be through loss or some other means), we can become lost. But if Jesus is our light all the time, then when the dark of night comes - we have illumination instead of confusion. Notice I didn’t say happiness. Happiness is situationally dependent. If you total your new car, you aren’t going to be happy—no matter if you know God or not. But you can still have Joy. Joy is different. Your hope is now placed correctly in the Creator. Good times or bad, God is still God. Joy means that you can lose something big, but still be content. Joy is the seed that God plants and waters in your soul. Without it, you are dependent upon good fortune to be satisfied. And as we all know, good fortune is fleeting.
I’m not sure what people do without God in their lives. I don’t say this in a boastful or naive way. I spent much of my own life refusing to look into the deeper truths of the Gospel, and when I finally didaccept a relationship with Jesus, it was a night and day difference. Jesus makes certain promises to us in the Bible. We are told that we are loved no matter what. We are told that our worth is not dependent upon how we look or how we perform for other people. But most of all, the thing that struck me when I began to allow the things that God has to say into my heart, was that I realized I am no longer alone. I don’t have to get through life by myself, on the strength of my own performance, and without any guidance from above.
What a relief to know that I do not stand or fall on my own account only, but that someone is in my corner all the time. This I think is another facet of hope. This is what anyone can possess. It’s something that no person or event can ever take away from you. I’m not going back to that other life before Jesus; I won’t even consider it.
Matthew chapter 12 tells us about Christ that “in his name nations will put their hope.” Is this just lip service? I don’t think so. It is my great joy to celebrate God in both the good times (when I am driving around with a full tank of gas and a happy family), as well as the bad times (when sickness or difficulty make their home with me). Is your own hope well placed? Is what you look to for comfort on a good day enough to sustain you on a bad one?
Wherever our heart is pointed, determines where we place our hope for the future. My wish is that your heart points up toward God the Father – in both good times and bad.
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