Hope Is Now

Hopelessness is such an overwhelming feeling.

I don't know if there is anything more difficult to hear, than someone who is heart sick sharing their feelings of hopelessness.

It is one thing to worry how things will work out, or to struggle to see the light at the end of the tunnel. We all struggle from time to time, wondering how things will come together. We all have issues that may scare us, discourage us, or stir fear and doubt.

But to lose all hope that things will ever get better, that is a feeling I pray no one would ever experience.

In Proverbs 13:12 it says, "Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but a longing fulfilled is a tree of life."

When we lose hope, or when we set our hope on something over and over and it seems to fail us, we become heart sick. We get to a place of desperation, and we cry out, "if there has ever been a day I needed this to work, today is that day!" Then the day ends, and still no change.

Truth is, our trouble is going to last longer than we would like it to. Hardship comes more frequently than we prefer, and we will likely experience hurt that seems greater than we can bear.

Even still, do not lose hope.

In Romans 15:13 it says, "May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit."

May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in Him...

I think sometimes we wait for our hope, joy, and peace to be found when the relief or the answer comes.

God wants us to experience hope, joy, and peace even in the trusting, even in the waiting.

So if you have been waiting on an answer, hear me please. If today is one of those days when, "if there has ever been a day I needed this to work, today is that day!", I encourage you to pray this prayer.

"God give me hope, joy and peace, as I wait."

This is a difficult prayer to pray, but it also moves our focus back to truth.

Our hope is not found in our circumstance, it is found in Jesus.

He Didn't Learn That On His Own

One of the best parts of being a Dad, is watching your kids mature and develop into individually talented, unique, and beautiful people.

I have been surprised at how much my kids take in from what they see me doing or not doing. Words cannot express how small I felt years ago, the day my oldest son sat down on the couch with his feet up and his hands behind his head. He began barking at his sister ordering her to get him something to eat and drink because, "he had a long day" and it was her job to wait on him.

He didn't learn that on his own... his lazy Dad had modeled it for him.

I have come to appreciate the undeveloped character traits in my children, as they serve as a reminder of where I need to grow. It is a great tool I can use to grow as an individual, but it is also great motivation to change, since it is not only me who is affected by my shortcomings.

The reality for most of us is, sometimes we get tired of changing. To be in a constant state of growing, learning, and changing can be exhausting. It becomes easy to just let things slide, to let it go this time, or to put it off until an imaginary future date we set.

Even though it is difficult, we are supposed to be growing and changing. All the time.

Galatians 6:9 says, "Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up."

Growing and changing is exhausting, but the benefit in return far outweighs the work it takes.

So whatever it is that you have been putting off, excusing, or meaning to get to sometime down the road; let me encourage you, pick it up, and start working on it now.

Don't wait to see the negative affects it has on the people around you. Take some ownership, and set out to make your influence a positive one.

I Caught a Fish That Was THIS Big

I am not a fisherman, but I have been fishing three times.

Once as a young boy with my best friend Wally, he managed to hook my back with his hook, tearing both my shirt and my flesh. My second time was with a group of youth leader friends in New Mexico. On the way I told them the story about Wally. This made the moment Cameron managed to firmly snag the side of my head with his hook on his back swing, even more ironic. The third trip, I sat in my friend Josh's boat freezing in the rain for a few hours, so although there were no fish involved, we did have fishing poles, so I guess it counts.

The one thing I know about fishing, is that every good fisherman, has a great fishing story. One of the main components to a great fishing story is how the story changes over time. It starts out as a 5 pound bass, and 20 years later, it is a 40 pound shark.

The thing is, as a general rule, everyone believes stretching the truth or lying isn't a good idea. Yet, for fishing stories, this rule gets a pass.

Reality is, there are quite a few places where truth stretching, or truth shrinking are accepted. I'm convinced it really isn't a good thing.

The area I want to talk about today is, truth in our relationships.

Somewhere along the way, we have defined love and acceptance as avoidance of tough truths. For the sake of the relationship, or out of love for the person, we don't talk about difficult things. We don't tell  them when we are hurt, frustrated, or disappointed; because we don't want them to feel bad.

I think part of the difficulty with this, is many of us have used the Bible to explain our approach.

For instance, in 1 Peter 4:8 it says, "Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins. "

We say, since I love this person, I will avoid the issue, cover it up, or say it isn't a big deal. Trouble is, that isn't what this verse is saying. When paired with other passages like, Matthew 18:15-17, James 1:19, and Romans 12:17 we see that we are supposed to work out our issues through conversation. We talk about it, with respect for each other, and we do our part to live in peace.

Once we take all these verses into consideration, and then apply 1 Peter 4:8, we see the bigger picture. We are to be open and honest in our dialogue with each other, talking about hurts, offenses, or misunderstandings. The reality is, that is hard to do, so we need to make sure we are committed to loving each other; and that love will help us get through the conversation without bitterness or unresolved hurt.

So let's commit to the hard work of building relationships and encouraging each other, making sure that it is all covered with the growing love we have for each other.