"Hope. It is the only thing stronger than fear," said the character President Snow in the movie The Hunger Games. He said this as he was trying to convince someone to reduce the hope of a people, a people who had rebelled against him in the past. Even though this is a fictional character, I see truth in what the writers had him say about hope - it is stronger than the sort of fear that the character sought to elicit on people.
In contrast to this character, God is real, and just, and He brings hope instead of aiming to crush it. Even though we cannot see the nail marks in Christ's hands and feet like Thomas did (see John 20:24-29), we can have faith in who God is and what He did through Christ, His Son. There is this pattern that the Bible takes in revealing God's identity and how He's worked to free us from the slavery of sin.
We can have a healthy fear of Him, in regards to knowing He is just and in having respect, honor, and trust in Him (Exodus 18:21, Psalm 115:11, Revelation 14:7). This mighty God is also our Counselor (Isaiah 9:6). We can fully trust in God for who says He is through His Word and how He's been faithful to fulfill His promises.
As we put our faith and trust in Him, we put our hope in Him. We can have full confidence in Him, and He will not leave us empty. In His nature, He can make this hope within us flourish.
Lord, thank You for being our hope. Help us increase our hope in You, and help us share the hope we have with others who need You, too. Amen.
"For God has not given us a spirit of timidity, but of power and love and discipline" (2 Timothy 1:7, NASB).
Above study based on the workbook HeartCall: Women Sharing God's Heart (Jaye Martin, 1999).
Photo from hungergamesmovie.org.
