“…I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full..."

(John 10:10)

It’s a strange word—Hope. In a world full of disillusionment we wonder if hope still exists. Many of us have become discouraged because we live with disappointment daily. Maybe we have given up dreaming. Maybe we have given up trying to change things. Maybe we have become convinced that nothing in our world can ever really change. Maybe we have lost hope.

Pause, then rewind. Back when Jesus came into our world he encountered a generation who had lost hope as well. God’s covenant people, the Jews, were expectantly clinging to His ancient promises of people, land, and blessing. But they found themselves living under Roman rule. Their land occupied and controlled by the Roman military machine. Caesar proclaimed himself to be god. Roman politics, military, culture and religion cast a growing shadow of doubt over God’s people and His promises. What hope did God’s people have living under Rome? They had waited so long for God to move. They had waited so long for messiah. But now, was it too late? What difference could one person make?

Then Jesus came. “But when the time had fully come, God sent his Son…” (Galatians 4:4). That changed everything. No longer were people bound by their past or stuck in their present. In Jesus, people found hope and a future. Jesus invited people into a new reality; a new way of relating to God. Jesus offered people a way to be transformed, forgiven, healed, and redeemed. Jesus brought hope.

Push play. In our lives today it is arduous to recover hope once we have lost it. Many people simply give in to the false perception that life is noting but a series of disappointments and let downs, with a few happy moments sprinkled in to ease their discontent. But it doesn’t have to be like this. Following Jesus offers us a much brighter alternative. In Jesus we encounter hope from disappointment, redemption from failure, and freedom from captivity.

I want to invite you on a journey. In these next 40 days that lead up to Easter join with me and many others as we seek and hold onto hope in Jesus. We hold onto hope that God’s light will shine light in the dark areas of our lives. We hold onto hope that God will give us direction where we feel confused. We hold onto God for hope that broken areas of our lives will be healed. We hold onto God for hope that He will find us if we are lost. We hold onto God for hope that Jesus will burst into our lives in an undeniable and overwhelming way.