Hope Helps Us Hang On

I had long conversations with a few ladies last night. We ended up talking about K, let's call her Karen. Karen has been struggling with a Cancer diagnosis for over a year.


Last May, her prognosis was negative. The doctors said "Karen, you don't have much longer left."


However, though many who visited her knew it, they would have never guessed it.


You see, Karen is the type of lady who is hopeful. You would have never guessed Karen was in pain, Karen was ill, Karen was suffering, or Karen knew the road ahead was going to be gloomy.


Instead, she was bursting with optimism, confidence, and bravery.


That ended up bringing up another man, L, let's call him Leon. A few years ago, Leon lost his wife to a house explosion. I will never forget that day. Leon's wife was my grandmother's best friend. Because of faulty wiring, when she plugged a vacuum in, her house blew up. 


She didn't survive. My grandmother, our family, our whole community was devastated.


Leon was never the same after that. He remarried, and soon after, he was diagnosed with Cancer. Like Karen, he was warned that not much time here on earth was left for him.


And everyone knew it. Because Leon had lost all hope. It wasn't that he wanted to die- he just knew the outcome, and he saw no reason for him to be hopeful.


Within a few months, Leon did die. He was hopeless. He had no hope. 


While I can't prove this, I would say there's a reason why Karen is still alive. Because she's fighting. She has been quoted saying, "I'm going to beat this, you'll see." 


It might be a Scientific reason, but I think Karen's hope-filled spirit has something to do with her survival.


I'm not saying, "No matter what situation, if you have hope, you'll live." That, I know, is not possible.


But I am trying to tell you this- No matter what the situation, if you have hope, it will help you hold on and help you fight. And if you reach the end, you have so much to hope for- eternal life.


Hopeless means no hope.


Hope helps us hang on. 


Hope won't make your life perfect. But it will make life easier. You're not going to be immune to problems, persecution, sadness, sorrow, or the like. 


But hope will help you hang on.


Hopelessness. Sometimes it's the only emotion we can grasp. 


It's in a lot of people. Survey statistics say that the majority people aren't really looking to a promising future for themselves.


Find hope in Jesus. He will help you hang on. He knows. Here's why:
Have you been rejected by those who should love you? So was Jesus. The crowds He had come to save called for His crucifixion. 
Have you been tormented by the people who are closest to you? So was Jesus. Those Jesus loved beat Him, crowned Him with thorns, lied about Him, and nailed Him to a cross.  
Has your life been filled with pain and problems? So was Jesus'. 
Have you prayed your cup of suffering might pass from you? Jesus prayed that prayer.
Have you felt forsaken? Jesus cried on the cross his feelings of being forsaken.

Have you ever thought there will never be an end to your trials and torments? Banish that idea from your mind. 


Jesus died so you might live, and He loves you so much He only promises good for your life.


Jesus entered this sinful world not to be part of your persecution, but to save you from it. 


Langston Hughes must have felt a sharp pain of hopelessness. He penned a poem titled, "What Happens to a Dream Deferred?"


The poem is full of analogies that Hughes uses to describe crushed dreams.


There is no hope in the poem.


Sometimes, we feel that way too- like a raisin in the sun, festering like a sore, rotting like old meat, sagging and ready to explode.


But Jesus writes a new ending to our hopeless poems. He says, "With me, there is hope, and because I bring hope, you can hang on."


Jesus can and does bring hope where there is only darkness, despair and depression. Jesus does not add to that- He brings hope so you can climb your way out of it.


Do not listen to the lies of the feelings of hopelessness and despair- hang on. Hope will help you.


I took these pictures today. Find comfort knowing, that just as these butterflies burst from their cocoons, Jesus burst from His tomb so there might be hope for you to hang on to.