If passion and courage are byproducts of hope, is hope a byproduct of something else? Or is hope foundational virtue?
I believe it to be a foundational virtue. Paul tells us that hope is one of three things that will last forever. If it will last forever, it must not need anything else to fuel it. The question then becomes if it is a baseline or foundational virtue, why is it so lacking within the church?
To reiterate, hope is a feeling of expectation. It’s that gitty, joyous sensation right before you get picked to be on a team. It’s the determination you feel to find the last Easter egg. It’s that almost cocky confidence to ask God to rain down fire on your flooded sacrifice.
I believe that many of us don’t experience hope because of the failed sequence of misplaced expectations. We all had hope at one point but somewhere along the way that hope was proven disappointing.
We hoped in our parents, we hoped in church leaders, we hoped in our friends, we hoped for a certain outcome or situation, but we got let down. And if that happens enough (sometimes once is all it takes) hope for anything fans out.
Even our hope that we thought we had in God can die out. We hoped for a healing that never came, we witness the disappoint in others in the church, the moral failure of pastors and other influential members. We see these things and our expectations for greatness slowly turn to what’s the point or worse, a silent, unspoken, disbelief in the willingness of God.
In and through all these situations though, most of the time our hope was anchored in the wrong thing. Jesus is the only rock that is strong enough to keep our boat from following the current of chaos.
If my theology fails, I still expect Jesus to be true. If healing doesn’t come, I expect Jesus to still carry my sickness. If those around me stumble or fall, I expect Jesus to remain perfect. If everything seems to be falling apart around me, I expect Jesus to be there with me.
Jesus is the hope of the nations and ours should be in Him and Him alone. And if we continue to put our hope in Him our soul will be strengthened to endure until the end proudly boasting before the world,
I know my God is able but even if He doesn’t, I will not bow down.
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