Have you ever had your hopes dashed? You really hoped for: that job promotion, that clean bill of health, that romantic engagement, that thing that was going to finally make you happy. And it doesn’t happen. And it disappoints you. It discourages you. It makes you want to quit. And often times, you feel ashamed because you broadcast about the possibilities ahead of time, in full confidence that it would happen.
Perhaps our hopes are dashed and we experience these emotions because we have placed our hope in the wrong place.
Hope is a confident expectancy. It is such a confidence that you act as though it is a done deal…like it already happened.
Perhaps your put your hope in your boss and his promises; or you put your hope in your Dr’s prognosis; or you put your hope in your boyfriend and his “hints”; or you put your hope in money, materialism, and man. All of these are false hopes.
The Bible warns us about these things:
Psalm 20:7 says, “Some trust in chariots and some in horses, but we trust in the name of the Lord our God.”
Chariots and horses were their means of protection and escape from the enemy. As these warriors fought, they put their hope in horses and chariots to protect them, to help them escape the enemy and/or win the battle.
Psalm 62:10 says, “Don’t make your living by extortion or put your hope in stealing. And if your wealth increases, don’t make it the center of your life.”
“Stealing” is referring to plunder that is taken after taking over a city or village. It was often placed on display as a “trophy” to show power and preeminence. They put their hope in prestige and the way they have prospered, won awards, maybe even charging unnecessary prices, taking from others what was not their’s to take.
Psalm 146:3 says, “Do not put your trust in princes, in human beings, who cannot save.” They put their hope in powerful people who may not come through for them when they need them the most, like they had so many times before.
1 Timothy 6:17 says “Command those who are rich in this present world not to be arrogant nor to put their hope in wealth, which is so uncertain, but to put their hope in God, who richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment.” They were confident that their wealth would always be there and never go away.
If we were honest, I think we could all say that we have misplaced our hope a time or two. But here is a truth that comes with a promise from God’s Word:
Psalm 25:1-3 says, “To You, O Lord, I lift up my soul (my mind, will and emotions); in You I trust, O my God. Do not let me be put to shame nor let my enemies triumph over me. No one whose hope is in You will ever be put to shame.”
No one whose hope is in the Lord will ever be put to shame.
Why would we chose to put our hope, our confidence, in anything or anyone else? To be confident in God and His deep love for us is to know without a shadow of a doubt that you will not have regret nor feel embarrassed and ashamed. Never.
That is why Paul said that he calls things that are not as though they already are. How could he say that? Because his hope was in the Lord!
So may today, we evaluate where we may have misplaced our hope. And may we all declare today, “Lord, I trust….I put my hope in You.”
You are loved,
Jena