What does it mean to have hope? We hear it, we say it. Hope. This one word holds so much expectation, promise, anticipation, joy, and possibility. Hope. Our hearts lift at the thought of our hope coming to pass. But what happens when it feels like hope dies? 

I am facing the death of my marriage. The agony of seeing my hope shoveled like dirt, one toss at a time, into the grave that holds the coffin of my marriage feels unbearable. The pain and sorrow of loss and deep grief fill my heart. Questions pound. Why? How? I feel afraid to face the future. What will it look like? Will I ever heal from this? 

My life verse is Romans 12:12 – Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer. How can I be joyful in hope in the midst of burying it? I can not reconcile what I am experiencing and what God is asking me to do. To move on, I can’t hold onto something that doesn’t have the capacity to be fruitful. Show me, Lord, how can I be joyful in hope when it feels like hope is dead?  

As I prayed this prayer, God began to speak. Julie, the hope in My Word is not the hope you are burying. The hope you are burying is the hope of a visualized outcome. A vison you have constructed in your mind of how things should look and feel. You are burying the hope of how you wanted your life to unfold, a hope you have created, not Me. My hope is eternal; it is true regardless of your situation, and you will never have to bury it; it will never die.  

Be joyful in the hope that all things work together for my good. (Romans 8:28) Be joyful in the hope that what was intended to harm you, God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done. (Genesis 50:20) Be joyful in the hope that My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness. (2 Corinthians 12:9)  Be joyful in the hope that God who is able, through his mighty power at work within us, to accomplish infinitely more than we might ask or think. (Ephesians 3:20) Be joyful in the hope that God will lavish His unfailing love for a thousand generations on those who love Him and obey His commands. (Exodous 20:6) 

When life feels unstable, unfair, and broken, God’s promises are the hope we can find joy in. We must bury the hope of a constructed future we created. That has to die. Today, open your heart to the hope and promise of a surrendered heart to Jesus Christ. He will be with you in times of trouble. He will give His angels charge over you and guard you in all my ways. He will rescue you. (Psalm 91) He raises the dead (John 5:21) and redeems (psalm 107:2). He has a future for you far greater than one you could ever construct.