My Hope

I hope I get that job. I hope we win. I hope this is right. I hope … hope.

This morning I sat down with my coffee in one hand and my Bible in the other and opened to the book of John. It’s been a whirlwind of a week. I had a book deadline on Friday and I was scrambling to make some last minute changes. I just wasn’t happy with how the book was working. Something was just off. At 3:47pm an email pops into my box from my editor titled Manuscript. I was terrified to open it. Oh, no she wants it right now. What do I do? I can’t send this to her – it’s awful. It’s drivel, it’s worse than drivel, it’s really icky drivel. Lord help…..

So I did what any good writer would do – I ignored the email. That lasted about three minutes and then curiosity got the best of me. If she says send it NOW, I will and I’ll tell her the truth. I’m not going to blow this.

I open the email – it reads:

Heading out of town and won’t be back until Monday. So if you want to take
the weekend to look over the manuscript, feel free. I won’t look at it
until next week.

I couldn’t even respond. I was so grateful that the Lord had heard me and He knew just what I needed – a break. He knew that I was over-thinking this whole thing I was forgetting where it all came from. I was so caught up in the process of writing, that I forgot why I was writing. After doing the happy dance around the room and flopping onto the couch for a moment of rest. I emailed my thanks – all professional like. I really just wanted to write some ooey- gooey, groveling email telling her how she saved my very life and my writing career .. . I decided that was probably not a great idea and I'd just stick with the simple for now.

This morning I flipped to the book of Romans:

May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that
you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit. (Romans 15:13)

This is what is missing – hope. I was so intent on getting this book finished that I’d forgotten why I was doing it. I wasn’t writing it to see my name on the cover or to call myself an author. I wasn’t writing to get rich (which is really good, because I’m not), I write because He called me to it. I wrote this book because He put it in my heart. I write for His glory, not mine. I needed to remember that – I needed to remember that He is my hope – my expectation of good. That in this hope I will find the joy and peace that have been missing these last few weeks.

I don’t know what the Lord has called you to at this time in your life. Maybe he’s call you to be an at-home Mom – I was blessed with that calling for a season. Maybe He’s called you to be a working Mom or He’s called you into full time ministry. He calls each of us to a different walk – an individual walk that starts with a relationship with Him.

Trust in the Lord with all your heart; lean not on your own understanding, in all your ways acknowledge Him and He will guide your path. Proverbs 3:5-6

• Are you trusting God? Not just with your words, but with your heart?
• Are you trusting Him in lead you or are you making your own way?
• Are you walking in Hope -- in an expectation of good?

I challenge you to examine your walk with the Lord. Ask Him to show you the way. Follow Him -- He will take you to amazing places.