I remember as a young boy at Christmas time how I ‘really hoped’ I would get all the present/presents I really wanted. We were never led to believe it was Santa who brought us gifts. We knew it was our parents and relatives who gave us any of the gifts we got on Christmas.

All my family, cousins, uncles and aunts always got together on Christmas Eve at our parents’ home. Maybe it was because my father was the oldest child in his family and we had the biggest house. There would always be plenty of Mexican food to enjoy and always lots of singing and playing music before any presents were opened.

We never had lots of presents under our Christmas tree but I remember how I still ‘really hoped’ I would get those special gifts/gifts I so wanted. All the many times I was disappointed those special gift/gifts never came, each Christmas I would still ‘really hope’ it would be different.

I looked up the word hope in the dictionary and here are some of the definitions it gave: “A feeling of expectation and desire for a certain thing to happen – To want something to happen or be true – To expect with confidence”

There isn’t a person alive who hasn’t at one time ‘really hoped’ for something in their life. Sometimes the things they hoped for came to pass but for the most part, much of what people ‘really hoped’ for didn’t come to pass and what was left behind were very discouraged, disillusioned, disappointed often times cynical people

Quote: “Biblical hope is not a mere desire for something good to happen. It is a confident expectation and desire for something good in the future. Biblical hope has moral certainty in it. When the Word of God says ‘Hope in God’ it does not mean, ‘Cross your fingers.’ It means, “Expect great things from God!”

Romans 4:18a “Against all hope, Abraham in hope believed and so became the father of many nations” (emphasis mine)  All arguments of sense, reason and experience, which is often what supports or produces our sense of hope, was against Abraham, yet he was silly enough to believe or put his hope in what God said would happen, actually would

Romans 15:13 “May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in Him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit” (emphasis mine)

With all the sadness and disappointment we have seen take place in the lives of many across our land, our nation and our world because of the Covid-19 virus, I am amazed at how people and especially the media tries to attack anyone who looks to speak hope into a very dark situation.

It often seems some would rather speak extensively about all the bad things which have come because of the Covid-19 virus, which are real, yet only make a short statement about all the people who have actually recovered for the Covid-19 virus, which is also real and true.

These are times we never been down before, which has shut down the world and though things may seem like no progress is taking place, we need to applaud when someone tries to give words of hope.

I hear some say we need to trust in science, or models we have or what some wise person may think or say; all the time so afraid to trust and call upon the name the Almighty God who is wiser than all the scientists the world has put together and more powerful than this Covid-19 virus!!

As believers, I feel our faith is being put to the test right now, I know mine is. I also believe this pandemic is revealing what or who we as believers have placed our hope; our trust in all this time.

In these very unsettling times we need to stand on what David writes in Psalm 62:5-6 “Find rest, O my soul, in God alone; my hope comes from Him. He alone is my rock and my salvation; He is my fortress, I will not be shaken” (emphasis mine)

Like David, are we placing our hope in God alone and finding our rest in Him? Is He really our rock, our fortress in these very difficult times so we are no shaken? If you discover that is not the case in your life, then it’s never too late to start doing that. That is the prayer for my life!!

Image by Mel Poole from Unsplash