Today is a sandwich day.
No, I’m not eating a sandwich…
…it’s an in-between day.
I’m in-between speaking at one retreat and heading for another.
I’m just home from a weekend with a lovely group of ladies (from three different churches, actually).
My heart is full.
What could make it fuller?
Another retreat!
Last weekend I was at Estes Park, Colorado, and this weekend I’m in Machias Valley, Maine (that’s 2311.6 miles in difference…I checked).
These opportunities, where I get to share my messy, broken stories and how the Lord God has redeemed them, are HOPE-GIVING for me.
Every speaking assignment God sends reminds me the Lord is still using what He’s doing in my life to point others to the abundance of life in Him.
So, when I’m in the middle of a story-not-yet-reversed-by-Jesus, the old stories leave me filled with HOPE.
That’s what remembering does.
The Apostle Peter, focused on suffering, says this:
That is a passage packed full of lessons…there’s just one I want to focus on today.
Not just any hope.
It’s living!!!
Have you ever thought about what that means?
Our HOPE is meant to be active.
It’s not ever passive.
According to my lexicon, in JESUS our HOPE has a vital power that is exerted upon our souls, and then, makes a difference in someone else’s soul.
Our hope is fresh, never perishing.
It’s strong, not meant to fizzle, or become weakened…
…AND…it’s reciprocal.
Hope is a verb, not a noun, that turns around and puts more hope into the heart of someone else.
No wonder the enemy fights hope-in-our-hearts so hugely.
I’m not sure, but I think REVIVAL could be an outflow!
I, for one, can’t wait to share the source of my living hope for another weekend!
May the Lord show up in all His Glory!