Hope in the In-Between - Devotion 5

How is Hope Found? 

“And Mary said, ‘My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior, for he has looked on the humble estate of his servant. For behold, from now on all generations will call me blessed; for he who is mighty has done great things for me, and holy is his name. And his mercy is for those who fear him from generation to generation. He has shown strength with his arm; he has scattered the proud in the thoughts of their hearts;he has brought down the mighty from their thronesand exalted those of humble estate; he has filled the hungry with good things, and the rich he has sent away empty. He has helped his servant Israel, in remembrance of his mercy, as he spoke to our fathers, to Abraham and to his offspring forever.’” Luke 1:46-55 

Today, we finally talk about how you live hope and how you can find hope. At the risk of sounding pretty redundant over the past five days, I say again, “It is about where you look.” 

The people of Israel had looked for hope in so many places other than God, and they were disappointed every time. They found themselves suffering and looking for hope in the wrong places. Hope was not found in other gods, nations, all kinds of sin, or in themselves.  

HOPE WAS COMING. 

This hope finally came on a quiet night in Bethlehem. There were sheep bleating, goats making whatever noises they make (Aren’t goats a riot?), and a bright star shone in the night sky. This was all foretold to a teenage girl who was not yet married. The angel Gabriel came to Mary and told her everything that was to take place. Mary would not know what would come next, but she would trust in God and hope in His plans. She would struggle. Joseph, her betrothed, would consider divorcing her quietly, though he could have had her stoned to death. She would face the whispers all around her of her “indiscretion.”  

HOPE WAS COMING, and so Mary sang.  

Oh, did she sing! She magnified the Lord and rejoiced in her Savior (whom she was carrying - MIND BLOWN!). In the middle of tough circumstances and an unknown future, Mary sang of hope! How did she do this? 

Hope found its way into her entire being because of her focus on and trust in the God who loved her, would not forsake her, and would be by her side every step of the way.  

Hope will find its way into whatever situation you are facing as you seek God’s face and not just His hand. As you live in the in-between, find hope in the One that will never leave you or forsake you. Find hope in the One who did not say it would be easy but that you would not be alone. Find hope in the One that was born to give glory to the Father by giving His life in place of yours. 

You will find hope as you lay your life down before Jesus and worship Him for who He is and what He has done. See, as you lift your eyes and focus on the face of God, you will be able to see how He is working. Notice how that suffering is producing endurance, the endurance is producing godly character, and how character is infusing hope into your thoughts, actions, and heart. 

As you live in the in-between, hope is found in Jesus and nowhere else.