HOPE FOR THE HOLIDAYS
Do you have hope? Hope is absolutely essential for our lives. A man can survive 40 days without food, 4 days without water, and about 4 minutes without air — but not even 4 seconds without hope.
The enemy of our soul loves to pull our minds toward negative thoughts and emotions because he knows it drains hope right out of us. And when our hope begins to spiral, we start believing lies — lies that God doesn’t care, that He’s distant, or that we’re walking through this season alone.
But Scripture paints a completely different picture.
Psalm 34:18 reminds us that He is near to the brokenhearted and saves those crushed in spirit.
Hebrews 13:5 promises that He will never leave us nor forsake us.
When we find ourselves in moments of darkness, negativity, and dwindling hope, may we cling to these truths and remember that God is still right here with us. One of my favorite passages is Psalm 3, where David says that God is the lifter of my head. If our heads weren’t hanging low, He wouldn’t need to lift them!
We all end up in a ditch on this road of life from time to time — but it’s what we do in the ditch that matters. Even David, a man after God’s own heart, faced hopeless situations. He would pour out his lament, but then he would remember God’s faithfulness, and hope would rise again.
Jeremiah, the weeping prophet, felt the same despair. Yet in Lamentations 3, he shifts his gaze back to the Lord and declares that God’s mercies are new every morning. And in Jeremiah 29:11, we’re reminded that God has good plans for us — plans to give us hope and a future.
As we enter this Christmas season, may you take hold of the One who brings light and hope into the world. May He restore your joy, renew your strength, and remind you that you are never alone.
Matthew 1:23 declares,
“See, the virgin will become pregnant and give birth to a son, and they will name him Immanuel,”
which means “God is with us.”
