♫ I Have a Hope ♪

I have a hope, I have a future,

I have a destiny that is yet awaiting me.

My life’s not over – a new beginning’s just begun.

I have a hope, I have this hope.

God has a plan; it’s not to harm me,

but it’s to prosper me and to hear me when I call.

He intercedes for me – working all things for my good.

Though trials may come, I have this hope.

I will yet praise Him, my Great Redeemer,

I will yet stand up and give Him glory with my life.

He takes my darkness and He turns it into light.

I will yet praise Him, My Lord, My God.

My God is for me – He’s not against me,

So tell me whom then, tell me, whom then shall I fear?

He has prepared for me great works He’ll help me to complete.

I have a hope, I have this hope.

Goodness and mercy are gonna follow me,

And I’ll forever dwell in the house of my Great King.

No eye has ever seen all He’s preparing there for me.

Though trials may come, I have this hope.

I will yet praise Him, my Great Redeemer,

I will yet stand up and give Him glory with my life.

He takes my darkness and He turns it into light.

I will yet praise Him, My Lord, My God.

There’s still hope for me today ‘cause the God of heaven loves me.

There’s still hope for me today ‘cause the God of heaven loves me.

There’s still hope for me today ‘cause the God of heaven loves me.

There’s still hope for me today ‘cause the God of heaven loves me.

I am getting choked up even as I type this song. I needed to hear it again today so I found the CD and turned it on. Suddenly a dozen thoughts and emotions were washing over me. The first time that I ever heard this song was our first Sunday at our new church.

We had just had a year that started out with some of the highest highs of our Christian walk, and ended with some of the lowest lows. We found ourselves wounded and reeling, and we picked up our bloody hearts and began the arduous process of looking for a new church.  As I sat in this new church listening to the words of this song, I was deeply moved, knowing that God was speaking to the depths of my soul.

HE could be trusted. Everything would be OK.

In the past few months we have watched as the “worlds” of people around us started to “tailspin.”

A woman from John’s office went in to give birth to her third child. Soon they heard the words “Code blue in OB” and found that she died during childbirth leaving her bewildered husband with a newborn and two brokenhearted children to deal with.

We learned that our pastor’s wife has an inoperable brain tumor. They shared the story of how the tumor was discovered and the worries and concerns that followed as that week progressed. They ended by affirming the ability of the Great Physician to heal her completely if He so chooses and reminding everyone that God’s ways are above our ways.

Our tiny niece required surgery on her feet followed by six months in casts. This is the same little girl that has (hopefully temporary) deafness due to bone-like obstructions in her ear canals. We recently learned the name of her genetic disorder. Her case is not as bad as it could be!

My husband said that, in light of the problems that these others are facing, ours are small. Annoying, but nothing, really.

I just wanted to hear this song again to remind me that God is sovereign and still GOOD is spite of it all. Not only will He work out my problem, but he is in control of these much bigger problems as well. His plan for all of us is GOOD, and it is for our good - So I can have HOPE!

HOPE is such a feeble word in our common, everyday language – that we expect something bad to happen but “hope” that it won’t. (I hope my car will start on this sub-zero day.)

NO!  that is not what hope means! It is an expectation of something GOOD -  I can plan on something good in my future. I have a HOPE!

Neither I nor our precious friends and family can see it right now, but God knows all that he is preparing for me and these others and it is simply our responsibility to trust Him and “give Him glory with my life” - and not just through all of the good times, but also through the difficult ones. 

I will yet praise Him, my Great Redeemer,

I will yet stand up and give Him glory with my life.

He takes my darkness and He turns it into light.

I will yet praise Him, My Lord, My God.

…Yet in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us. For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor powers, nor things present nor things to come, nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” (from Romans 8:18-39)

Linked to:
Imperfect Prose