Hope (noun)
-A feeling of expectation and desire for a certain thing to happen.
What a Sunday!! I mean, WOW! The relaunch exceeded all of the staff’s expectations and we could not be more excited for what’s ahead. During worship, my wife and I were overwhelmed by the sound of the pulsing crowd around us. One church body united in song, in cause, and in message. Many of you might remember how, just a year ago, this seemed so far beyond reach. We were barely holding on to hope. There was so much uncertainty, and we were left wondering what was next. There were so many obstacles facing us that we would never have imagined that all of this was possible.
I am a HUGE fan of The Lord of the Rings and other works by J.R.R. Tolkien. In one part of the story, a woman named Arwen is speaking to Aragorn, the man she loves. She has the ability to see the future and is encouraging him to not give up, that there is more to come and that he will do great things with his life. He responds with this,
“Alas! I cannot foresee it, and how it may come to pass is hidden from me. Yet with your hope, I will hope.”
Friends, let’s encourage each other with hope. Hope is addictive and all who are around you will want it. Hope is a confident expectation of what’s to come. It means walking into tricky situations with a smile on our face, not because we have it all figured out, but because we are confident in the one who does have it figured out and we know He has our back. My prayer is that we would continue to desire things for our church and community like never before. That we would desire hope itself. There is so much ahead of us and we are only just getting started. Let’s get out there and deal some hope this week! See ya around Oceanside…