Scott Kirk : Posted on Wednesday, January 8, 2014 3:17 PM
Hope: “Wanting something to happen or be the case”
I’ve hoped for a lot of things in life.
As a kid, I hoped that I would get the red schwinn bicycle I wanted for Christmas, as a junior higher I hoped that a certain girl would find me attractive, as a teenager I hoped that I would somehow find the money to buy my dream car, as a young adult I hoped I would get that perfect job I had applied for.
Hope … “wanting something to happen or be the case” … is powerful.
Hope helps us hit the alarm clock and get out of bed in the morning. Hope helps us plug along through a boring day knowing that the weekend is just around the corner. Hope powers us to push through difficult situations as we look for a brighter tomorrow.
But … the object of our hope has to be something that is really worthwhile.
I got that schwinn bicycle for Christmas, but within a few weeks the thrill went away and it was really just a bike.
That girl in junior high did notice me … but the “romance” was short lived (like most teenage crushes).
My family scraped their money together and helped me buy my first car, a 1966 Volkswagen Bug. I loved that car, but it was no match for a head on collision with a Volvo Stationwagon. My car was totaled.
And … I got that job I had hoped would be that perfect job, but in the end I discovered that it was really just a job.
As a result of being disappointed by some of the things I had hoped for, I began to talk with some trusted friends about my hopes and dreams. Their feedback and input helped me to transfer my hope from “stuff” into things that really had value. I learned that building deep and loving relationships with my family and friends would enable me to keep moving forward even when life went sideways and things don’t work out.
I still find myself hoping for pretty unimportant things sometimes like a good parking place and a short line at Starbucks. But I’m discovering that I’m not as crushed as I used to be when my hopes don’t come true.
Who is helping you transfer you hope from “stuff” into things that really have value?
At Living Water, our dream is to help people find Hope, Healing and Joy.
Can we help you?
