(Ephesians 1:18) I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in his holy people.
Where I live the summers are very hot. Often we have weeks where the temperature is more than a hundred degrees every day, and it barely cools off over night. Occasionally we get a break when the day time highs are in the upper-nineties, and the overnight temperatures descend into the low sixties. However, the heat returns, and we suffer through the hundred plus days until summer comes to an end.
Hope supports us through the summer months. We know that cooler weather is coming. It cooled down last year, so in hope we trust that the pattern will continue. Meanwhile, we do our best to patiently wait for the heat to end.
Isn’t life in Christ just like that? We live in a world full of sin, and we personally deal with the sin within us. Sometimes we have days full of love and peace. Other times the battle is on, and we struggle through the hard times. Yet we have great hope that the struggle will someday end, and we’ll be in the presence of the Lord forever.
Hope is the best way to navigate life. Hope fills us with joy and gives us the strength to be patient in times of affliction. Prayer keeps us in touch with our eternal Father so we can live our days anticipating our eternal future. Our hope is in him who has promised us an eternal life basking in his love. When we arrive at our final destination, hope will no longer be necessary. It will have fulfilled its purpose. Till then, hope will be there to encourage us along life’s path.