One Word

 What one word do I want to characterize my year in 2022?  I think hope is what I want to be the driving force. Our culture is ravaged by discouragement, anger, divisiveness and a lack of trust. The entire globe seems to be filled with unrest and discouragement. Americans do not seem to trust the institutions we have worked so hard to develop. Where does our Hope come from?  It is from our Creator and Lord, the God of the Bible. 

One conclusion for me is that He is God and I am not. If God is sovereign as the Bible teaches, there is no way for my finite mind to understand what an infinite God is doing right in front of me and behind the scenes. Why do some go through horrible circumstances while the next person continues to enjoy their situation with few troubles?  I don’t know. There is no way for me to figure it all out. I cannot control what I cannot control. But I can rest in the fact that God is in control, working life out for His honor and glory, not mine.  Either He is the sovereign Lord of His creation, or He is not. I choose to trust in Him despite the chaos of today. He is the hope that we desperately need. 

“I will say concerning the Lord, who is my refuge and my fortress, my God in whom I trust….”

‭‭Psalms‬ ‭91:2‬ ‭CSB‬‬

https://bible.com/bible/1713/psa.91.2.CSB

Without hope we are lost. Our call is to be salt and light in a broken world that is searching for Hope in all the wrong places. Our Hope in the Creator and King drives us to be authentic without a hidden agenda. What we are, you see every day in the way we live. Hope drives integrity.  It is fueled by faith with an output of love for life and others. Boundaries and walls are broken when others see the real us, striving to have integrity but certainly not perfect. Hope must be lived out moment by moment as we realize that God is our refuge and strength when all other resources are weak and failing in comparison.