What is hope to you?

[profnachos]

Sorry for being away for so long. I hope to catch up a bit here.

I just posted this question on my blog extending invitations to my readers, but let me repeat it here, and hopefully I will hear from you as well.

Even though hope has a prominent place in our faith ("And now these three remain, faith, hope and love"), I don't remember hearing a sermon about hope.

Perhaps that is a good thing. Both faith and love have been hijacked and perverted by the fundamentalists and transformed into tools of judgement and condemnation. Faith has come to mean putting your trust in the fundamentalist system. Love means to "tell the truth" by tell you that you are in sin when you don't submit yourself to the system.

So perhaps hope is our last hope . I don't remember anyone condemning anyone because of hope, or a theological debate about hope ending up in a brawl. Can you imagine that? "Hey you infidel, your hope sucks!"

But what is hope to you? And how does one exercise it?

At what point does a hope become a pipe dream and wishful thinking?

[dougjb]

Perhaps that is a good thing. Both faith and love have been hijacked and perverted by the fundamentalists and transformed into tools of judgement and condemnation. Faith has come to mean putting your trust in the fundamentalist system. Love means to "tell the truth" by tell you that you are in sin when you don't submit yourself to the system.

Hi profnachos,
It has been awhile since I have heard from you. It is a blessing to interact with you again. The way I see things is that people are always attempting to hijack faith and love and transform it into something other than what God intends. As far as hope is concerned, it is the object of hope that makes it effectual in the same way faith and love have their ultimate focus, which is in Jesus Christ. I believe that faith, hope, and love stand or fall together because they all point to the sovereign God of the universe who is a covenant God who seeks a relationship of union and communion with his people maintained in the bonds of love and faithfulness.
I know that God loves me, and because of this, I have hope because hope is a trust [and confidence] that the LORD will fulfill his promises. Hope is knowing that God will guide me, defend me, and never forsake me. Even though from a human perspective situations may not look promising, the LORD will have the last say in everything.
Profnachos, various groups may attempt to hijack faith and love, but Jesus Christ is the source of all faith, hope, and love. Unless someone is able to hijack God, they will not ultimately hijack our faith, hope, and love if we keep our eyes fixed on the author and finisher of our faith, Jesus Christ.

Some food for thought
Dougjb

[Voyager]

Hope to me is having a sense of purpose in life. Hope is having a cause to pursue that makes it worth waking up in the morning for. For many years after I left my spiritually abusive church, I had lost all sense of hope. It's only been over the last year or so that I have begun to get it back.

Hope to me is everything. Without it, we have no hope.

[exwitchoz]

I feel I have 'dominated' (for want of a better term) the Forum faaaaaaaar too much in the past cpl of days and fully intended to take a short break from posting for a while...

...but this question...

What is Hope to you...???

...came up...

...and having just come thru one of the very darkest periods of my life (in fact I am still not entirely 'over' it) the subject of 'Hope' is very close to my heart atm... so I couldn't walk away without saying a few words about it...

Now depending on where you are at the time "hope" can just be "wishful thinking"... as in "I hope (something) will happen..." ...But... this is not what the Bible means by the word "hope"... The Biblical definition of "hope" is "confident expectation"... and it is closely (I think almost inseperably) connected with "faith" and "trust"... and ultimately - I believe - "love"...

In fact... along with faith and trust and love, hope is an enduring 'virtue' of the Christian life (1 Corinthians 13:13)...

Now I guess we're all pretty familiar with the following verses from 1 Corithians 13...

If I speak in the tongues of men and angels, but have not love, I have become sounding brass or a tinkling symbal.

And if I have prophecy and know all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have all faith so as to remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing.

...and as love itself springs from hope (Colossians 1:4-5)... it's pretty self evident (IMHO) how important that simple word "HOPE" is...

Hope is a firm assurance regarding things that are unclear and unknown (Romans 8:24-25; Hebrews 11:1,7)... It is a fundamental component of the life of the righteous (Proverbs 23:18).... Without hope, life loses its meaning (Lamentations 3:18, Job 7:6) and in death there is no ...well... hope... (Isaiah 38:18, Job 17:15)

Those who trust or put their hope in God will be helped (Psalm 28:7) and they will not be confounded, put to shame, or disappointed (Isaiah 49:23)... Likewise those who have this trust and hope in God have a general confidence in God's protection and help (Jeremiah 29:11), and are free from fear and anxiety (Psalm 46:2-3)...

OK I admit I have been a pretty poor example of this myself in the past few days... but it was I who was lacking... not the God that I should have placed my faith and trust and hope in...

A Christian's hope is rooted in the faith in the eschatological (end time judgment) act/s of the resurrection of the dead (Acts 23:6), the redemption of the body and of the whole creation (Romans 8:23-25), eternal glory (Colossians 1:27), eternal life and the inheritance of the saints (Titus 3:5-7), the return of Christ (Titus 2:11-14), transformation into the likeness of Christ (1 John 3:2-3)...

The certainty of this blessed future is guaranteed thru the indwelling of the Spirit (Romans 8:23-25), Christ in us (Colossians 1:27), and the resurrection of Christ (Acts 2:26)

Hope is produced by endurance through suffering (Romans 5:2-5) - as I have learned all over again all too recently...

Those who hope in Christ will see Christ exalted in life and in death (Philippians 1:20)... The ever trustworthy promises of God give us hope (Hebrews 6:18-19) and we may boast in that hope (Hebrews 3:6) and can therefore exhibit great boldness in our faith (2 Corinthians 3:12)...

By contrast, those who do not place their trust in God are said to be without hope (Ephesians 2:12, 1 Thessalonians 4:13)

...and having been there myself recently... that is a lousy place to be...

...anyway... as I said at the start... I've 'dominated' the Forum too much and for too long recently... I'll keep checking in to offer prayer support for others... but at least for a while I'll try to sit on my hands while at the keyboard...

...but I couldn't let this thread pass by with ut throwing my 2c woth in...

*takes a cpl of steps back and sits on his hands for a while*

[Janice]

((((((((((((((((PROFNACHOS))))))))))

Good to see you my friend!

Hope to me is pretty much the same as faith. I can't "hope" without having the faith that what I'm hoping for will happen.

I HOPE that makes sense.

[Carmen]

Originally Posted by profnachos

...Both faith and love have been hijacked and perverted by the fundamentalists and transformed into tools of judgement and condemnation. Faith has come to mean putting your trust in the fundamentalist system. Love means to "tell the truth" by tell you that you are in sin when you don't submit yourself to the system.

So perhaps hope is our last hope . I don't remember anyone condemning anyone because of hope, or a theological debate about hope ending up in a brawl. Can you imagine that? "Hey you infidel, your hope sucks!"

But what is hope to you? And how does one exercise it?

At what point does a hope become a pipe dream and wishful thinking?

I think that hope is finally seeing light at the end of the tunnel, knowing that there is a way out of abusive situations, including the ones where faith and love have been perverted to work against people. My hope has been condemned by someone that wants to control me, but there is even hope in that situation. I am doing all I can to give that person every chance to change himself and the control situation, and if nothing works, then I can always leave the relationship. Previously I didn't know that leaving such a relationship was acceptable. I was afraid of what others might think. For me, hope is being freed from appearances, from reputation, the truth sets me free. In my case appearances for the sake of appearances are a lie, are part of the bondage. Wishful thinking would be to ignore the truth and only want to accept the cage of an illusion, a false hope. Real hope is accepting the truth and acting on it in my opinion.

[Theodora]

Will look forward to seeing responses here and will also try to visit your blog. ( I too have been rather sporadic in being able to post...including on my blog.)

Intense times for me at present....so perhaps my "hope" at the moment is simply that I CAN stay focused on what I need to do in the present and to trust God for the rest.

Will be thinking/meditating about this one in the days ahead. Thanks so much for posting.

HOPE you're doing well and that this Advent is full of joyful expectation for you. Hmmmmm......perhaps "joyful expectation" might be a definition of the moment for me of "hope?"

Grace and peace to you and yours this day--

Theodora

P.S. If interested, my mini-post on my blog yesterday included an updated picture of my granddaughter. I've now "met" her, but not had much time with her. The family is to be here over the holidays, but, as currently "scheduled," I don't have much ...um...HOPE!...that I'll be "allowed" much time with her or my son and his wife then either. More musings...is "hope" the antithesis of what we'd take to be "realistic assessment"?--- i.e. what I'd HOPE would happen is the opposite of what I can ENVISION happening as current attitudes presently stand.

Siiiiiiiiiiiiigh.

Blessings to you, David. I've missed you and your insights and really am glad to see you!!!

My blog: http://theodorasjourney.blogspot.com/

Originally Posted by profnachos

Sorry for being away for so long. I hope to catch up a bit here.

I just posted this question on my blog extending invitations to my readers, but let me repeat it here, and hopefully I will hear from you as well.

Even though hope has a prominent place in our faith ("And now these three remain, faith, hope and love"), I don't remember hearing a sermon about hope.

Perhaps that is a good thing. Both faith and love have been hijacked and perverted by the fundamentalists and transformed into tools of judgement and condemnation. Faith has come to mean putting your trust in the fundamentalist system. Love means to "tell the truth" by tell you that you are in sin when you don't submit yourself to the system.

So perhaps hope is our last hope . I don't remember anyone condemning anyone because of hope, or a theological debate about hope ending up in a brawl. Can you imagine that? "Hey you infidel, your hope sucks!"

But what is hope to you? And how does one exercise it?

At what point does a hope become a pipe dream and wishful thinking?

[Anna Marta]

Hope is the is the flashlight in my pocket with an eternal battery.

Rom 5:3-5
And not only this, but we also exult in our tribulations, knowing that tribulation brings about perseverance; and perseverance, proven character; and proven character, hope; and hope does not disappoint,... NASU

[beginagainrose]

Hope for me is the faith and belief that God has a plan and a purpose for all that I have suffered in my life to use for my good and His glory in the lives of others (Jer. 29:11 For I know the plans I have for you, says the Lord, not for calamity, but to give you a future and a HOPE).