Colleen Christensen of Saskatoon made an unusual discovery while working in her garden. Wrapped around the roots of some lilies, she discovered a wedding ring engraved with the letters J & J 8/19/62. Although she is conducting an exhaustive search, she has not yet found the owner. It’s always a happy day when you find something you have lost isn’t it? But more serious than losing a valued object is when you lose such things as peace and hope for the future. While some things can be restored, only God can restore our souls. Remember David’s words in the famous 23rd Psalm, “He restores my soul.” He is indeed, “A friend who sticks closer than a brother”, and He can restore peace and hope to our lives. All we need do is enter into a personal relationship with Him by faith, and sincerely ask for restoration. Have you done that?
Tag Archives: Hope
August 22 – Conquered by Mt. Everest
Shrya Shah Klorfine, a 33 year old woman from Toronto, reached the summit of Mt. Everest, but sadly she died while descending. Great mountains are pitiless. A British naturalist made the comment, “We may be visitors on these mountains, but not conquerors.” In our lives, we too face mountains that seem unconquerable, sometimes feeling there is nowhere to turn and no way to solve our huge problems. Perhaps David the psalmist felt like that when he was inspired to write, “This poor man cried out, and the Lord heard him and saved him out of all his troubles.” Then later, having been delivered by God, he issued the invitation, “O taste and see that the Lord is good.” Are you facing your own mountains today? If so, then I urge you to turn to the Lord Jesus for help. He said, “Come to me all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.”
August 20 – Nothing to Live For
Robert Webster and Martin Chisholm have been awarded the chief’s award – the city of Calgary’s highest level of recognition – for assisting a young man who was trying to commit suicide. He said that no one cared for him and he had nothing to live for. But Webster and Chisholm convinced him that his life was worth living, and led him to safety. This is a sad story which, except for these two caring men, would have ended tragically. The young man had lost all hope. In our troubled world, more and more people are finding themselves in a similar situation. If that is where you are today, please listen to the words of David in the 61st Psalm. Describing his circumstances he wrote, “Hear my cry, O God… when my heart is overwhelmed; lead me to the rock that is higher than I.” That higher power, that rock, is Jesus. You can reach out to him today. He cares.
August 10 – Hope Based on a Falsehood
A fable is told of a man sentenced to death, but who was granted a reprieve of one year by the king. Learning that the king was fond of horses, he had promised he would teach the king’s horse how to fly within a year. His friends laughed but he said,” within the year, the king may die, the horse may die, I may die, or who knows, the king’s horse may learn to fly. This bizarre anecdote teaches us that hope based on unreality is no hope at all – just silly optimism. How much better it is to base one’s hope for time and eternity on the one who can fulfill that hope. One hymn writer put it well, “my hope is built on nothing less than Jesus blood and righteousness.” On Christ the solid rock I stand, all other ground is sinking sand.” Also, Paul the apostle wrote, “may the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing …” In what are you putting your hope for the future?
August 6 – Starting Over
In his best-selling book come before winter and share my hope, Dr. Charles Swindoll made the following insightful statement – “to start over, you have to know where you are. To get somewhere else, it’s necessary to know where you are standing.” Perhaps today you are assessing your life, acknowledging your needs and wanting to start over. Maybe you have finished running and ready to change your mind about a lot of things – your lifestyle, the next life, and God. If so, it is necessary to know where you are. The Bible tells us that we are all out of fellowship with our maker until Christ is in our lives. But when we want to start over, Jesus offers us forgiveness for the past and hope for the future. He says, “I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice I will come in.”
Tools for HOPE 