“For I know the plans I have for you”
— this is the Lord’s declaration —
“plans for your welfare, not for disaster,
to give you a future and a hope.”
Jeremiah 29:11 HCSB
* ~ ♥ ~ ✞ ~ ♥ ~ *
H. O. P. E. = Holding On Praying Expectantly
So many times we’re in captivity or we’re having great problems; we think, “Oh, God has forgotten me. He is not thinking of me anymore.” Oh, that’s not so. God is thinking of you.
“But God is always looking down at the end of the road. Our common mistake is that we are always looking for immediate advantage, immediate fulfillment.”
– Chuck Smith (click here to read entire commentary)
I cannot begin to count the number of times I have jumped into something considering only the immediate results instead of thinking about the long-term consequences. I wanted the problem fixed NOW and knew just what to do. How many blessings have I circumvented? How many additional problems have I caused simply because I didn’t see the big picture? How much different might things have turned out if I had just held on to hope and continued to pray expectantly?
And you will feel secure, because there is hope;
you will look around and take your rest in security.
Job 11:18 ESV
Hope gives us security. There is no need to rush ahead, to solve the problem, or to resolve the issue, without waiting for God’s instructions. Because we have hope we can rest, secure in the knowledge that God has the perfect plan for us. He sees the big picture and knows exactly what needs to happen and when. His time frame, not ours.
When the Lord is our hope,
- He becomes our Help and our Shield (Psalm 33:20)
- He shows us mercy and love us steadfastly (Psalm 33:18)
- He faithfully answers our prayers (Psalm 65:5) [just not always in the ways we think they should be answered]
- He is our trust and confidence (Psalm 71:5)
- We are blessed (Jeremiah 17:7)
The Lord is our hope. We can have confidence that our future is secure in His hands. God is always thinking of us. He has great blessings in store for us when we wait patiently and follow His lead. He sees the big picture and has our future all mapped out accordingly, as long as we don’t rush ahead. So my prayer today is:
Let all that I am wait quietly upon only God.
May I silently submit to Him,
for He is my hope.
Psalm 62:5
Cynda, as I read your devotional this sentence stood out, “Hope gives us security.” I was reminded that with hope must come trust. There is “no need to rush ahead,” we can rest secure when we truly hope, truly trust, truly expect God to take care of us. I, too, have jumped ahead of God too many times (so thankful for His patience!) So I’m praying along with you today that I will wait quietly and submit to Him, the God Who always has a plan and our best interest in mind. 🙂 <3
Thank you Clella. You are right – hope does involve a great deal of trust. Too often I find it hard to remain patient & just trust
great devo, cynda; thank you for directing us to waiting for all that God has planned for us! echoing your (and david’s!) prayer <3
Thanks Coleen. I know God see the big picture & sometimes I get impatient when I can’t see it too :/ but he always gives just enough light for the step we are on 🙂