Seasons of Hope

My new book, Seasons of Hope, will soon be coming out. We're in final formatting and are hoping to have it listed on Amazon around Easter. But I thought I'd share a few quotes from it:

HOPE'S FALL

I did a little research on the season we call “the fall.” Do you know why we call it that? It’s because of the “falling” of leaves during this period. Things fall in the fall. Leaves fall, branches fall, flowers fall. Pay attention, this is important! Everything that needs to fall falls in the fall. Fall is a pruning time. Fall is when things that are dead, diseased, and infested are removed. Fall is the season when everything that is superficial is stripped away. But, it’s also the time when seeds fall.

Several years ago, there was a grove of oak trees outside of my office. Every fall, you could walk in that grove and find numerous acorns peppering the landscape. Those acorns each experienced a long fall on their way to the ground. I bet if a typical acorn could talk, it would say that its fall wasn’t a pleasant experience. It would complain, “One day I was on top of the world enjoying the view. I was well fed, had plenty of friends, and had plenty of sunshine. My life was all blue skies. Then it happened. I fell and my life turned upside down. I went from the top to the bottom!”

Hope is like an acorn. It begins with a fall. But after the fall, it gets planted and grows into something beautiful . . .

 

Take a look at Romans 5:3-4. Paul seems to be talking about noble suffering here, like when we suffer for Christ. Look at what he says:

3Not only so, but we also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; 4perseverance, character; and character, hope. Romans 5:3-4 (NIV) (emphasis mine)

Notice in this passage how there is a direct line from suffering to hope. Hope begins with a fall of some sort in the passage. Paul says that “suffering” produces perseverance, perseverance, character, and character, what? Hope! Suffering eventually leads to hope in the hands of God. Hope very often begins with a fall.

 

If you're at the end of yourself due to some sort of fall, look up. God may just be up to something big in your life.

Christmas Hope

In my last entry, we stood on God's Presence as a solid reason for Hope. Obviously, God becoming Incarnate in the Person of Jesus Christ is a magnificent display of God's Presence. Emmanuel, a title given to Christ, literally means "God with Us!" He's with us! And because He's with us, we have hope. But His presence isn't always pleasant. Sometimes God loves us so much He hurts us. The great Bible Teacher, Warren Wiersbe, says God will hurt His own, but He will not harm his own. What does that mean? Well, when Christmas tree farmers grow their trees for the season, they often have to prune them. In other words, they cut off diseased or unnecessary branches in order to grow healthier trees. Sometimes God prunes us.
Listen, God doesn’t just give us His presence and make promises in order to give us a free pass to be stupid and lazy. Hope requires disciplined cooperation with Him. That’s called pruning.
Dr. Rick Warren says the following:
“Pruning involves cutting off not only dead branches but also living ones as well in order to improve the shape of the plant and stimulate growth. Pruning is essential for increased productivity. It’s not optional . . . If you’re going to be productive . . . God will put you through times of pruning. God prunes you for fruitfulness . . . You might struggle to understand why, but the reason is He is preparing you for even greater ministry.”
Jesus says in John 15:2:
"He also prunes every branch that does produce fruit to make it produce more fruit." John 15:2 (GW)
Christmas (or any other season for that matter) can be a time of pruning. So if you’re struggling with hopelessness this season, remember God’s Promises, trust in God’s Presence, and submit to God’s Pruning and you will find hope really does have its reasons! God will produce fruit in your life.

More Hope Reasons

In my earlier post, we stood on the foundation of God's Promises as our first reason for hope. Another great reason for hope is God's Presence.
God has not abandoned the human race. He sees us and, if we let Him, He’ll see to us. Some time ago, there was a very painful situation in my life. It was excruciating to me and it felt as if every close friend in my life had abandoned me. So one day, I did a Forest Gump and started running. As I ran, I prayed desperately to God for help. After I stopped, I bowed before Him and tearfully put my forehead on the ground. Tears were coming down my face mixed with sweat and grime. But then I felt it--the Presence of the Lord. In that moment, my spirit heard God whisper, “It’s going to be okay Rusty because I’m here with you.” And guess what, He was faithful. Years later, I've found that every whisper from God during that painful period proved to be true. God was with me the whole time and continues to be my greatest source of tangible hope.
Look at what Caleb and Joshua tell a frightened Israel:
" . . . the Lord is with us. Do not be afraid of them." Num. 14:9 (NIV)
Hope has its reasons because God does not abandon His people! He is with you.

Hope's Reasons

Rebecca Pippert, in her book entitled Hope Has It’s Reasons asks the question, “Is life merely one long absurd pursuit of things we can never have, or does hope have its reasons?”
Good question. Is hope really something on which to base our lives? Evidence everywhere suggests otherwise. For example, we just ended the bloodiest century in history. The economy is crippled with tremendous debt. Children are shooting each other in our schools. And we are still at war (will it ever end?)!
Someone said, “I hope life isn't a big joke, because I don't get it.” Is life just a big joke that we don’t get? Or does hope actually have its reasons?
Well the answer is a resounding “Yes!!!” And there are at least three reasons why. Let me share the first in this post and give the other two later:
1. God’s Promises.
God has never violated a promise, ever! I wish I was like that. I’m a man of my word, but I’m not perfect. Months ago I promised myself that I would lose ten pounds. Guess what. I gained ten!
But God always keeps His promises!
A few of my favorites for His people are:
"The Lord is close to the brokenhearted;
he rescues those who are crushed in spirit."
Psalm 34:18 (NLT)
And Jesus says: [14:1] "Do not let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God; trust also in Me." John 14:1 (NIV)
God’s promises give hope because He always keeps them!