Hope

Yesterday, in the University Chapel the preacher read from Isaiah...

For to us a child is born,
    to us a son is given;
and the government shall be upon his shoulder,
    and his name shall be called
Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God,
    Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
⁷ Of the increase of his government and of peace
    there will be no end,
on the throne of David and over his kingdom,
    to establish it and to uphold it
with justice and with righteousness
    from this time forth and forevermore.
The zeal of the Lord of hosts will do this. (Isaiah 9. 6-7)

The preacher's voice carried with it a subdued passion. That which Isaiah had proclaimed some 600 years before the birth of the Prince of Peace had become the "hope" on which people eagerly awaited with great anticipation the coming of the Messiah.

Hope...

My iWitness...

My favorite quote on "Hope" is attributed to the Hall of Famer from the Chicago Cubs Ernie Banks...

You can live 30 days without food
You can live 3 days without water
You can live 3 minutes without air
But you cannot live 10 seconds without hope!

Hope and the firm basis of it is predicated on that which is promising the "hopeful" outcome.

I hope that I will be the winner of the Men's 55 US Open Tennis Championship in 2018.
That's called Pollyanna, pie in the sky "wishful" thinking.
I hope for world peace!
I can't even hope for that because the people being held responsible to bring about such peace are not trustworthy to bring about that cause.

I hope that poverty will be forever vanquished.
Poverty could be eliminated in our country but I really don't hope for that either because the decision makers in our country can't make up their minds on how to go about such a task. Even if they would find unanimity in their desire would their constituents be interested in making that a priority in their lives.

As with most things, this list could go on and on...

I do hope for peace in our hearts, minds and in our lives...
I do hope that the very poverty of our spiritual life will be vanquished...
I do hope that in the end, the love of God wins out and that I will live in the house of the Lord forever and ever.

I can hope for these things because such hope is rooted in the firm foundation of the One who can bring about such things - God!

What are you hoping for today?
Where might your hope be placed?
For that which you hope for, on what basis do you find support for such hope?

I hope you find "hope" in the One who is the author of all of our hopes and desires...
Otherwise, you only have 10 seconds to live!

And that's my iWitness...
Laugh often and Fear not!
David!