My Tree of Hope

 

I've thought a lot about this word HOPE.   And it holds a totally different meaning for me now, than it did even 2 years ago. In fact, I really didn't think about what HOPE meant until experiencing the loss of our two precious granddaughters, Sophie and Dasah.   But after watching my daughter and dear son in love,  lose their two babies, I wondered if I even could move into a mindset of hope at all. I know I was holding on to hope, that both Sophie and Dasah would be healed here on earth. And though I accepted their heavenly healing, I still struggle with what it means to hope in something and then, that hope be unfulfilled. I decided that 2015 would be my Year of Hope.  And to move into 2015 I have been learning what hope means.  I recently listened to a message, shared by Paul Tripp, at CRU's Denver Christmas Conference.  Lindsey encouraged me to listen to him and so I did.  He spoke to my heart about what it means to suffer in this life.  He took me to Romans 8:18-25 where the apostle Paul says that, "I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory that is to be revealed to us."   This passage is a reminder that  in this life there will be suffering.  It is not abnormal because we live in a broken world that doesn't function the way God intended for it to function when He originally created it.  And so there will be all kinds of suffering that we will experience.  But the good news is that there is hope for the sufferers.  There is, "glory that is to be revealed to us."   Paul Tripp defined hope as, "a confident expectation of a guaranteed result."  What does this mean?  I have to go back to what I know God  guarantees.  The only confidence I have is in God and His Word, which I believe offers the truths that will enable me to "wait in hope."

 

1. God guarantees eternal life to all who believe in Him. (John 17:3)  

2. God guarantees that He will never leave us. (Matt 28:20)

3.  God guarantees He will wipe away every tear. ( Rev 21:3-4)

4.  God guarantees that we will overwhelmingly conquer and that nothing can separate us from His love.  (Romans 8:37-38)

5.  God guarantees the promise of His Holy Spirit to lead and guide us into all truth. (John 15:26)

6.  God guaranteed His great love for us, by sending His son to die on the cross for my sin, thus enabling me to be reconciled back to God. ( Rom 5:8)

 

These guarantees enable me to look forward to seeing Sophie and Dasah again in heaven.  I know on days that I question and doubt, that God is with me in my questions and will never leave me Hopeless.

And for every tear I shed, because even this grandmother is still feeling such loss and sorrow, wishing I could have one more minute to hold these little girls in my arms, the Lord will wipe them away with His love. When I feel helpless, so far away from my children, wanting to offer comfort or a hug, the Lord is giving them strength to carry on each day. The promise of God's truths speaking to my family and leading and guiding them, is far more powerful than anything I can say or do.   

 

I don't know what 2015 holds but I do know I can have HOPE in the One who guarantees that He will be with me each day of this new year.  

 

And so, I am keeping my Tree of Hope lit throughout the year.  And today, on the second month birthday that Dasah is in heaven, I am putting on a second little flower.  And each month I will add another, so that I can see the tree begin to bloom with signs of new life, new fragrance, new truths to be learned, and prayerfully a story in my heart that begins to blossom in redeemed ways, ways I may not even know about yet. 

 

 

 

Paul Tripp said in his message, "In the middle of all the brokenness, God is up to something good!"

God is committed to the success of His redeeming plan.  So I am also on the lookout for the "something good."  That is my HOPE for 2015. To help me grow in my understanding of biblical hope, I am reading, The One Year Book of Hope, by Nancy Guthrie.  It is a powerful resource from a woman who also lost two infants and reflects on the truths from Scripture that enabled her to find strength each day in her grief and loss.   There is going to be a "glorious unfolding" of God's purposes and plans.  I think we will see some in my lifetime, and I know I will see the complete fulfillment of those plans the first day I set foot in heaven.  Oh how I long for that day even more now!

 

(To listen to Paul Tripp go to http://www.godcc.com/  click  videos, click Paul Tripp Session 2 , he is about 30 minutes into the video, with music preceding his message)

 

This song by Stephen Curtis Chapman, gives my heart hope that Dasah's story, just like Sophie's story, isn't over yet!

 

The Glorious Unfolding by Stephen Curtis Chapman