Wednesday, January 29, 2020

how hope wins

Every night, Beau and I talk about hope. We talk about the day, we talk about the future, and we process our past together. Lately, there's been a lot of hurt and heartbreak in our "Tribe". We pray for physical healing for friends with cancer diagnoses. We pray for emotional healing for friends suffering loss. We pray for restoration in marriages. We pray for friends and neighbors to return to a hope-filled relationship with Jesus. We celebrated the birth of our neice this Monday, but mourned our lost Whisper all over again. We've been asking each other the question, "What does hope look like?"


Tonight, we were driving to celebrate a good friend's birthday. We wanted to flip the script of sadness and weariness and celebrate. It had been a hard day for each of us, for different reasons. We knew that a lot of our friends were struggling, too. The rainy, rainy sky made all of the darkness feel heavier.

We started the car ride listening to this song.That's the beauty of hope. It's able to shine right through the darkness. Hope takes every awful circumstance and confidently declares "IT DOESN'T HAVE TO BE THIS WAY." 

For you have been my hope, Sovereign LORD,
my confidence since my youth.
From birth I have relied on you;
you brought me forth from my mother's womb.
I will ever praise You. --Psalm 71:5-6 NIV

 I think the emotions we process tonight are larger than prose. It's why my soul resonates with a song, with a psalm. This, then, is my ode to hope:

So here we stand,
claiming power in the name of the God who has always been.
We claim power in the defeat of death forever.
Beau keeps reminding me not to be afraid of the Darkness,
but stare it in the face and boldly claim my identity as a Child of the Light.
I'm struggling. I'm grieving. I'm so sad and so angry, often simultaneously.
And God can only ever be GOOD.
That's how hope wins.
God is always good.
The battles are always temporary.
The struggles will always be resolved,
for God is larger than my story
and promises
life
forever.

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Ephesians 5

Therefore, be imitators of God as dearly loved children and live in love, just as Christ also loved us and gave himself for us, a sacrificial and fragrant offering to God. But among you there must not be either sexual immorality, impurity of any kind, or greed, as these are not fitting for the saints. Neither should there be vulgar speech, foolish talk, or coarse jesting – all of which are out of character – but rather thanksgiving. For you can be confident of this one thing: that no person who is immoral, impure, or greedy (such a person is an idolater) has any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and God.

Let nobody deceive you with empty words, for because of these things God’s wrath comes on the sons of disobedience. Therefore do not be partakers with them, for you were at one time darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of the light – for the fruit of the light consists in all goodness, righteousness, and truth – and find out what pleases the Lord. Do not participate in the unfruitful deeds of darkness, but rather expose them. For the things they do in secret are shameful even to mention. But all things being exposed by the light are made evident. For everything made evident is light, and for this reason it says:

“Awake, O sleeper!

Rise from the dead,

and Christ will shine on you!”

Therefore be very careful how you live – not as unwise but as wise, taking advantage of every opportunity, because the days are evil. For this reason do not be foolish, but be wise by understanding what the Lord’s will is. And do not get drunk with wine, which is debauchery, but be filled by the Spirit, speaking to one another in psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs, singing and making music in your hearts to the Lord, always giving thanks to God the Father for each other in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, and submitting to one another out of reverence for Christ.

Wives, submit to your husbands as to the Lord, because the husband is the head of the wife as also Christ is the head of the church – he himself being the savior of the body. But as the church submits to Christ, so also wives should submit to their husbands in everything. Husbands, love your wives just as Christ loved the church and gave himself for her to sanctify her by cleansing her with the washing of the water by the word, so that he may present the church to himself as glorious – not having a stain or wrinkle, or any such blemish, but holy and blameless. In the same way husbands ought to love their wives as their own bodies. He who loves his wife loves himself. For no one has ever hated his own body but he feeds it and takes care of it, just as Christ also does the church, for we are members of his body. For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and will be joined to his wife, and the two will become one flesh. This mystery is great – but I am actually speaking with reference to Christ and the church. Nevertheless, each one of you must also love his own wife as he loves himself, and the wife must respect her husband.

hey guys