“It’s not whether you get knocked down, it’s whether you get up.”
- Vince Lombardi
If you are feeling hopeless: Be still. And know that He is God. Clear your mind of any thoughts and listen. The Spirit can be quiet and we have to stop running around and always trying to think of solutions. We need to sit and pray and listen. The Spirit will give you His fruits (Galatians 5:22-23). These are the things that bring you hope.
I was watching a baking competition show and at one point this woman was in tears and so upset, thinking she was going home. And while I already knew the outcome, while I already knew this woman wasn’t going home that day, I was in tears with her. I commiserated with the feelings of hopelessness she had and at the same time I was thinking: “Don’t give up! You are actually going to win the entire competition!” In that moment I realized how God must feel for us. I understood how you could feel the emotions of that person’s moment and yet cheer for them knowing what would happen in the future. It was a balance I never understood before.
That verse in John 16 where Jesus says to “…take heart. I have overcome the world” has so much more meaning for me now. I get it. I get how God can mourn with me and yet be excited for me. Because He understands where I am, but even better, He knows where I am going.
So when you feel hopeless, remember that God is with you and He hurts with you.
And it is not hopeless, because God is greater than our circumstances.
“Not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us.”
Romans 5:3-5
The Holy Spirit is the key to hope. We often don’t realize when the Spirit is stirring in us. We don’t recognize the nudges in our minds as Him. Because our minds are so loud. In this current climate, we have so many voices speaking at us. It fills our minds and crowds out the Voice we need to hear. And all these voices tend to produce fear. They drown out the peace of the Spirit when we focus on them over Him. We must be intentional in who we listen to. If you focus your thoughts on the God’s Word, the Spirit will speak and He frees you of fear.
“For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.”
2 Timothy 1:7
We are fulfilled in the Spirit and given power, love, and understanding. That is fascinating stuff!
“I am no longer a slave to fear. I am a child of God.”
- Newsboys, "No Longer Slaves"
Questions and Challenges:
- Think back to a time you felt hopeless. What brought you out of it?
or
- If you are feeling hopeless, what takeaways can you use from this chapter? What spoke to your heart?
and
- Take some time in the Bible this week. Develop a habit of reading God's word.
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