Thursday, March 11, 2010

Patience and Hope


I remember a story I wrote in fifth grade in which I named the main character Patience, which I find fascinating because I think that is a character trait that lately I have been practicing and honing during my time here. This last week during the women's conference I feel like I was reminded of this quality that I need to continue to embrace even in the face of an unknown future. I need patience and hope.

One of my favorite things I loved at the WOTH retreat, was my small group full of amazing women all serving in such marvelous and unique ways. My favorite moment at Coconut Grove was the night I sat in our small group and we discussed hope.

What does hope mean? We all seemed to just need to hear it and be reminded of the beauty of the hope that God promises us. It doesn't mean everything is going to just go our way. It doesn't mean everything will be a piece of cake. It doesn't mean that because God loves us He will cater to our every whim and desire. No, it means that we will be faced with challenges, that we will struggle, that we will fight, that we will desire peace sometimes and get strife... But, we won't be alone in our challenges-- God will bring us through them and help us to grow stronger. We won't struggle hopelessly as we continually fall, we will face our enemies-- we will find forgiveness in the cross. It means that even when we are confronted with someone wanting to fight we will find peace through God's presence in our lives.

Hope is looking into the completely unknown future with a smile on your face, knowing that the Lord your God is going to see you through-- the same tomorrow as He did today, the same today as He did yesterday.

Hebrews 11:1
Proverbs 31:25

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