“Hope deferred makes the heart sick…” Proverbs 13:12
"I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God so that you may know that you have eternal life." 1 John 5:13
"Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil, or fade. This inheritance is kept in heaven for you, who through faith are shielded by God's power until the coming of the salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time." 1 Peter 1:3-4
"For in this hope we were saved. But hope that is seen is no hope at all. Who hopes for what they already have? But if we hope for what we do not yet have, we wait for it patiently. In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us through wordless groans. And he who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for God’s people in accordance with the will of God. nd we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose. For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters. And those he predestined, he also called; those he called, he also justified; those he justified, he also glorified." Romans 8:24-30
Without hope we can literally become sick. Heartsick. Sick in our minds and souls. This sickness can lead to discouragement, depression, hopelessness. But how do we find hope? Where do we look for it? How do we gain it? How do we fill our hearts and minds with the hope of Christ? We may know in our heads that Christ alone is our source of hope… but how do we get our hearts to believe it, too?
“Hope, as you will find, is a skill that takes practice.” Edward Welch
Hope takes practice. Hope takes faith. Hope takes work. Hope must be an active word in our vocabulary. Hope is not passive. Hope doesn’t arrive on our front doorstep. Hope must be invited in. Hope must be welcomed. Hope must be practiced.
You may be wondering what I mean by “practicing hope” and this is a valid question. It sounds odd or maybe you’ve never considered before that we can be proactive and intentional about filling our lives with hope and joy.
8 Ways to Practice Having Hope in Christ
1. Pray often. Pray without ceasing. When you don’t know what to pray, say the Name of Jesus. Pray God’s Word.
2. Remind yourself of who you are in Christ. He delights in you! You are His child. You are chosen. You are loved. You are forgiven. You have the hope of eternity.
3. Confide in a friend. Do not suffer alone. Send out a plea for help by text. Let others walk alongside you in your trials.
4. Go outside. Nature can be therapeutic. Take a walk. Thank God for His beautiful creation.
5. Count your blessings. Actually name them. Write them down. Create a gratitude journal and add to it daily. Count your blessings one by one…
6. Praise. Did you know that when we worship and praise our Father the enemy flees? Praise silences the enemy. So turn up the praise music! Have a dance party!
7. Do not neglect fellowship through the Body of Christ. As hard as it can be when we are down and out, we must not forsake the assembling of believers. We were made for relationships. Allow others to encourage your heart and you can be an encouragement as well! Allow others to lift you up in prayer. And when you intercede for others, that also helps to take your mind off of your own problems.
8. Get in the Word. Stay in the Word. Pray the Word. Memorize the Word. Meditate on the Word. His Word gives life to us. Do not neglect the gift of His Word. This love letter from God is the key to our hopefulness.
“Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider him who endured such opposition from sinners, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.” Hebrews 12:1-3
Friends, we must learn to fix our eyes upon Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith. For the joy set before Christ, He endured the cross. Can you imagine? With joy he faced the cross… for you and for me. This passage tells us how to gain hope: “Consider Him who endured such opposition from sinners, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.”
When we lose heart, we become hopeless. To not lose heart, we must practice hope. We must set our hearts and minds on things above and not on earthly things.
“Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things.” Colossians 3:1-2
God’s Word is full of admonition and encouragement for where to fix our mind and thoughts. When we meditate on God’s Word, when we fix our hearts and minds on the things of God, what we are doing is practicing hope. And this act of practicing hope is essential to our abundant life in Christ.
Candace Crabtree is just a broken mama thankful for grace and new mercies every morning. She and her husband live in East Tennessee where they homeschool their 3 kids. Candace also enjoys teaching piano, coffee, good books and blogging at His Mercy Is New. On her blog she shares encouragement for weary women from God's Word along with resources for learning to pray the Scriptures.