The Journey
My father-in-law is here! He made the long trek from Seattle, WA, USA and has finally lied down to rest after a tedious journey and a hot day. I remember making that trip myself 18 months ago and am not looking forward to making it again in May, especially with a one-year-old in tow.
But when I asked my father-in-law about the trip and commented on how tired he must be, this is what he said: “Because I was coming to see my son, daughter-in-law and grandson, I didn’t notice anything. I was just so happy.”
I can just imagine him, at the start of the journey, packing his bags and thinking of meeting his grandson for the first time. Mid-flight, he was probably picturing the reunion with his son. As he waited in line at customs maybe he was looking forward to getting to know his daughter-in-law better for the next 9 months.
The journey, however long, can be packed with hope.
Have you seen Shawshank Redemption? One of the motifs in the film is hope. The protagonist, Andy, says to his fellow inmate friend: “Remember, Red, hope is a good thing, maybe the best of things, and no good thing ever dies.” Without hope, even freedom loses meaning. At the end of the film (spoiler alert!), Red realizes the truth of the power of hope as he travels in search of his friend: “I find I’m so excited, I can barely sit still or hold a thought in my head. I think it’s the excitement only a free man can feel, a free man at the start of a long journey whose conclusion is uncertain. I hope I can make it across the border. I hope to see my friend and shake his hand. I hope the Pacific is as blue as it has been in my dreams. I hope.”
Have you ever tried searching for a key word online? Type “hope” on Biblegateway.com and you’ll find 6 pages of results. Here are a few of my favorites:
“If You, Lord, should mark iniquities, O Lord, who could stand? But there is forgiveness with You, that You may be feared. I wait for the Lord, my soul waits, and in His word I do hope. My soul waits for the Lord more than those who watch for the morning – Yes, more than those who watch for the morning. O Israel, hope in the Lord; for with the Lord there is mercy, and with Him is abundant redemption. And He shall redeem Israel from all his iniquities” (Psalm 130).
“For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the Lord, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope. Then you will call upon Me and go and pray to Me, and I will listen to you. And you will seek Me and find Me, when you search for Me with all your heart” (Jeremiah 29:11-13).
“This I recall to my mind, Therefore I have hope. Through the Lord’s mercies we are not consumed, Because His compassions fail not. They are new every morning; Great is Your faithfulness. “The Lord is my portion,” says my soul, “Therefore I hope in Him!” The Lord is good to those who wait for Him, To the soul who seeks Him. It is good that one should hope and wait quietly For the salvation of the Lord.” (Lamentaions 3:21-26).
“Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom also we have access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God. And not only that, but we also glory in tribulations, knowing that tribulation produces perseverance; and perseverance, character; and character, hope. Now hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit who was given to us. For when we were still without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly. For scarcely for a righteous man will one die; yet perhaps for a good man someone would even dare to die. But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us” (Romans 5:1-8).
” For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us . . . For we were saved in this hope, but hope that is seen is not hope; for why does one still hope for what he sees? But if we hope for what we do not see, we eagerly wait for it with perseverance” (Romans 8:18-25).
“I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened, so that you will know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints, and what is the surpassing greatness of His power toward us who believe” (Ephesians 1:17-19).
“For who is our hope or joy or crown of exultation? Is it not even you, in the presence of our Lord Jesus at His coming?” (1 Thessalonians 2:19).
“The hope of eternal life, which God, who cannot lie, promised long ages ago” (Titus 1:2).
What or who is your hope?
If your journey has become mundane, meaningless, or muddled, try hope.
I hope my father-in-law has a good experience living with us in Australia. I hope to see my family and friends in May. I hope our church in the city grows by the grace of God. I hope Micah grows up to be like his Dad. I hope.
by: Jinha Kim
"But those who drink the water I give them will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give them will become in them a spring of water welling up to eternal life." John 4:14