What is Your Hope?

From the sermon I preached at Linden Alliance Church on July 3.

Have you ever thought to yourself, if only…? If only I could have a different job, or have more vacation time. Or maybe you can’t wait for things to be over with so you can move on. Maybe you are in high school or college and things will just be better once you are done school. Maybe your kids are at an age that makes life difficult and you think it will get better once they get out of this stage.

What is it that you are putting your hope in? What is defining your sense of purpose and vision?

We all have something that gives us purpose. We all have a vision for what we would like to be doing. Some people’s visions and purposes are more elaborate than others, but we all have them. However, our vision and purpose for our lives is nothing compared to God’s vision and purpose for our lives. As C.S. Lewis put it, we are like children settling with making mud pies in the slum because we cannot imagine what is meant by the offer of a holiday at the sea. (From his sermon, Weight of Glory).

We tend to look inside ourselves to find what will fulfill us most, when we should be looking into the heart of God to see the vision for how God wants to work in our lives. God is waiting for an opportunity to guide us in the path He has planned for us, and when we pray, we are giving God that opportunity.

Our hope needs to rest in a complete understanding of God and his inheritance. When we hope in God and what he has planned for us, our hope is placed in what will never fail. When our hope is placed in anything that is not God, our hope is misplaced. Everything but God will fail us at some point.