Be joyful in hope
patient in affliction
faithful in prayer.
Romans 12:12
Joyful in hope …
That’s easy to say … sometimes.
Other times it is more of a challenge. Until we remember that to be joyful is not necessarily happy, but to be living in the assurance that we are not alone, that we only see a part of the picture, that happily ever after is a human construct, not an eternal reality.
For, Jesus himself is the one that said (John 16:33),
“in this world you will have trouble”
So … we need to understand that joy is about Jesus in us … happy is just about us.
“People speak of hope as if it is this delicate, ephemeral thing made of whispers and spider’s webs.
It’s not.
Hope has dirt on her face, blood on her knuckles, the grit of the cobblestones in her hair, and just spat out a tooth as she rises for another go.”
-Twitter Post by Matthew @CrowsFault
I love that quote (above) about hope. Because hope is formed in the trenches, in the hospital rooms, and funeral homes. It is present in the offices of bosses, and bankers, and lawyers. It sits with us at big family gatherings, and office parties, and on the streets surrounded by people, but fighting to feel the presence of (the) one who cares.
Hope is messy.
Christmas is messy. Advent is messy.
Waiting for saving is to sometime be in a position of rigidity from our head to our toes, hands formed into fists, teeth clenched tight. It is then when we are holding onto hope with a death grip … truly holding on for our life.
And, that’s okay. That is what Christmas is about too. So that we have the One who is our Hope in troubled times.
Whether a holy or a broken one, hallelujah is to praise joyously … there is hope in both.
itsawonderfilledlife 