Hoping against Hope

"Though the fig tree does not bud and there are no grapes on teh vines, though the olive crop fails, adn fields produce no food, though there are no sheep in the pen and no cattle in the stalls, yet I will rejoice in the Lord, I will be joyful in God my Savior." Habakkuk 3:19


I'll have to admit, I don't venture into Habakkuk much. Nevertheless, my devotional reading led me there yesterday. The theme I'm reading about this week is hope. And sometimes we hope against hope. Really, if there is a glimmer of success on the horizon, we're moving past hope. Hope is the belief of better things to come when everything is hopeless. Hope us trusting in God even when life seems to be handing you lemon after lemon. Think about this passage and the era it was written. If the crops didn't produce and the farm animals died, there would be no food for the family and no money to be made. Their livelihood and life-line was desolate. They had lost all hope. Yet, circumstances do not determine the hope of the faithful. Circumstances are always changing, but our hope is in the One who never changes.

Perhaps you've found yourself recently in a situation like Habakkuk. The money has dried up. The leads on jobs have dried up. The doctors have given a grim report. The relationship has fallen apart seemingly beyond repair. Is your hope in the circumstances or in the One who is above all circumstances? Do you still recjoice in Him? Friend, He is worthy of our rejoicing. He has loved you and redeemed you. And the one circumstance that you could not change, the forgiveness of your sins, He changed forever. That proved His love for us, and we can trust that He's working good in us and for us now. So hope in Him. Hope against hope, no matter how dry the fields seem or how empty the stalls are. Keep hoping. Keep trusting. Keep rejoicing. Keep believing. For our hope is not in our circumstances but in Almighty God.