Hoping in God When Life Is Hard |
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All of us experience those moments in life when we’d rather give up than move forward, whether it’s with a difficult relationship, an illness that hits someone we love, or agonizing losses from cancer, war, or natural disasters. Life is hard, and there are times when no amount of wealth or fame can cure the hopelessness we feel. While it may be true that we can dull the pain for a moment, maintaining the ability to wade through the “ache” of life is one of our greatest challenges.
I’ve had seasons in my own life when I’ve been gripped by a sinking, hopeless feeling. I was devastated when my uncle and grandmother died within months of each other. I felt overwhelmed during a period of unemployment when my wife and I were expecting our first child, and then we lost a child through miscarriage. There was an especially painful season of being disowned by my father for my rebelliousness. There was the time I was assaulted in a parking lot. And the time our home was violently broken into. My wife had three emergency surgeries. I could go on and on. I’m sure you have your own list as well because life is disappointing.
When trials come, some believe we can find strength from within, mustering up self-will and courage with the firmness of a strong inner voice. Others promote the benefits of being uplifted in community, rightly identifying the need we all have for companionship, friendship, and encouragement from others. But what happens when both our inner fortitude and the voices of our relational circle fail? What if we reach a point in life when we don’t feel equipped to press onward, and friends and family fail us?
In Christian belief, God is the one who supersedes the inherent fallibility of myself and those around me. I don’t have to trust in myself or others. Instead, -
I can trust the transcendent, omniscient, omnipresent, omnipotent God who sent His Son, Jesus, to live and die and rise again.
I’d rather put my faith in a resurrected Christ than in the shakiness of my own wits or the inconsistent support of people around me.1
The living hope that Peter references is available for you and me today. We can face life’s difficulties and remain hopeful because the object of our hope — God Himself — has proven to be true and reliable. In fact, we can trust God so that even in death, which is often seen as the worst thing that can happen to us, there is still hope. Hope and the Ultimate Restoration of All Things
The superpower of Christian hope is that even if God does not raise what I want Him to, there will come a day when all that is broken in nature, culture, and people will nonetheless ultimately be renewed. In other words, -
God will one day restore beauty in nature, culture, and people. All that has been tarnished by sin and evil will be redeemed, and our disappointments will be a distant memory.
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God is the one who supersedes the inherent fallibility of myself and those around me. |
God is the one who supersedes the inherent fallibility of myself and those around me. |
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The book of Revelation is a prophetic letter written by John, an early Christian disciple who was exiled to Patmos. Revelation is a dramatic, metaphorical account of the cosmic battle in our “already and not yet” reality and what happens at the end of time. In the end, Jesus triumphs through love and saves the world — beauty overcomes disappointment, and God’s benevolent reign and rule are inaugurated. The word end is a tad misleading when discussing Revelation though, because it’s really the beginning of a renewed world in the garden city (the best of nature and culture) with God’s presence and people from every tongue, tribe, and nation (the restoration of relationship with God and others).
Because of this teleological or end-time perspective, Christians can walk with courage even if our wishes and dreams do not come true. The word teleological means “starting from the end and reasoning back, explaining things based on their end purpose.” 2 Knowing the end of the story gives us hope for today.
“What about the idea that ‘God can raise the bread’?” you might ask. It’s true that God can perform any miracle today, and creation and resurrection are sure signs of God’s capabilities. But Christian hope does not mean I get what I want as if God exists for me alone. Christian hope means I can trust God in any predicament, believing that even if my personal aspirations do not come to fruition, there is an ultimate restoration coming that is promised by the one who is “Faithful and True” (Revelation 19:11).
Christian hope doesn’t assure us that life will be painless; it assures us that God is with us through the ups and downs of life. But it’s not just that God is with us; it’s that He is for us. God is committed to us and for our good. The apostle Paul writes to the church in Rome,
We know that in all things God works for the good of those who love Him, who have been called according to His purpose. — Romans 8:28
We can trust that God is for our good, even when it may not seem like it and even if the answers we’re seeking regarding our hardships are not present in our lifetime.
In his book With Open Hands, Henri Nouwen writes about how our prayers are offered to God with open hands.3 We ask God with eager expectation for our hopes, wishes, and dreams. But we do so with open hands, recognizing that our highest hope is in a supreme God who is for our good — in life or in death. Indeed, we can pray to God with living hope and leave every outcome to Him. |
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Ironically, it’s when we find our truest source of hope in God before ourselves and others that we can then begin to trust our inner selves and a stable community, all of whom are made in the image of God. The question of primacy is important: Do I trust myself or the opinions of others more than I trust in a transcendent God who is the author of all hope? For the Christian, the clear answer is to begin with God, who is unchanging and for our good. God then gives us the tools to trust ourselves and others.
- The definition of teleological can be found at www.vocabulary.com/dictionary/teleological#
- See Henri Nouwen, With Open Hands (Notre Dame, IN: Ave Maria, 1972), 12–17.
Excerpted with permission from Beautiful, Disappointing, Hopeful by Drew Hyun, copyright Drew Hyun. * |
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Life is beautiful. Life is disappointing. And, life is hopeful. When life is hard, we are not left without hope, without help, or alone. If we’re in that hard space today, let’s lift our faces to our gracious God who loves us so deeply and open our hands knowing that He is good and the outcome belongs to Him. ~ Devotionals Daily |
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How do we make sense of a world full of beauty and yet so much disappointment? |
Beautiful, Disappointing, Hopeful: How Gratitude, Grief, and Grace Reflect the Christian Story |
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+ Extra 20% off $50 with code BIBLE |
+ Extra 20% off $50 with code BIBLE |
In Beautiful, Disappointing, Hopeful, Drew Hyun explains how the Christian faith provides a lens through which we can understand the beautiful and disappointing world we live in, while offering the kind of promising hope we long for.
Throughout history we have tried to make sense of the world that we inhabit and how we can navigate through the tension of all that is good and broken in this life. Yet most of our attempts to avoid loss simply lead to greater anxiety—an unresolved fear that we will eventually lose what we most love and need. Weaving a rich tapestry of Christian tradition and personal illustrations, Hyun offers Christianity as a true and compelling vision for life that faithfully points the way through loss to true beauty. He presents three deep practices that can build lasting spiritual resilience and help you learn how to grow through life's losses and disappointments. By exploring these contemplative spiritual practices—Gratitude, Grieving, and Grace—as a means of centering your life more fully into a holistic spirituality, you can uncover meaningful responses to the full range of lived experiences that will lead you to a grounded yet transcendent hope. |
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Turn My Mourning into Dancing |
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