Find hope: here's where to lookFalse promises deceive us. TV commercials shout about quick fixes and instant solutions. We may have become cynical, but those tactics must work or advertisers wouldn't keep using them. In our quest for a pain-free life, we overlook one important truth: the pain-free life doesn't exist. When too much pain piles up, we can sink into depression or despair. Everything we've tried in the past has failed. Real danger threatens when hopelessness sets in.
Can you find hope in a store?To boost low self worth, we head for the mall or our favorite store. We've been programmed to believe that treating ourselves will lift our spirits, but this gift lift never lasts long. That's because you can't find hope in material objects.Okay, so maybe a new hairdo or spa treatment will do it. The spa businesses say they can cleanse us and restore our spirit. Huh? Like overpriced mud packs and massages can reach down into your heart and give you a reason to wake up in the morning? Don't believe the hype. There's nothing there behind the sophisticated smoke and mirrors. It may feel good for a day to pamper yourself, but your wallet won't be the only thing that's empty when you're done. Can you find hope in your career?Careers are great, when kept in perspective, but they're unpredictable. A downturn in the economy can eliminate your job, maybe even the product or service you used to work on. If you become disabled, your career may end unexpectedly. To advance, you may have to move somewhere you don't want to go or travel more than you'd like.I found my writing career challenging, fun, even exciting at times, but circumstances change. New ownership or even a new boss can grind your career to a halt. I'm not trying to be pessimistic but rather realistic. You can't find hope in a career because you can't control it. Can you find hope in people?Many of us singles hope to be married some day. Our great hope is that we will find a good person who will appreciate us, love us, and want to spend the rest of their life with us. That's a healthy goal, well worth pursuing. I'm told, by happily married people, that marriage is the greatest thing on earth when it works right.Can you find hope in marriage? It's certainly a good dream to have because it can provide so much fulfillment and happiness. If we become too cautious, too cynical because we're afraid of getting hurt, we'll never step out in faith on anything. Nothing snuffs out hope faster than fear. The unexpected happens and most of the time we're not prepared to deal with it. But that shouldn't make us duck our head into our shell like a turtle, as many singles do, thinking we're too fragile to survive some pain. Yes, it's hard to forgive people when they hurt us. We expect so much of them, forgetting they're human and have weaknesses just like ours. We can put our hope in people if we're willing to suffer some bumps and bruises. It is going to happen. So where can you find hope?Over the past 50+ years of being a Christian, I've learned through painful experience to put my hope in Jesus. He, himself, doesn't change. He's always loving, kind, and gracious. He has my best interests at heart, even when it doesn't feel like it and I get demolished sometimes.You can hope in God because he's all-powerful and has the ability to change things. He has changed circumstances for me, but more importantly, he has changed me over the years. My greatest desire in life is to leave the old, selfish me behind and become the man I want to be. That's a lifelong process and I get impatient with myself, but God never does. He has hope for me, even when I mess things up. His patience is as infinite as his love, thank heavens. The kind of fulfillment God gives doesn't wear off like the boost from a new pair of shoes or even a new car. He made us for himself, and he's the only thing that can really satisfy. I find hope in God because he can deliver. When you're down in the pits, I believe you can find hope in God too. He has a gigantic, sustaining love he wants to pour into you. Doesn't that seem like something worth hoping for? Here's hope for the brokenhearted...
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