A Meditation on Hope

In the middle of all the chaos we see in the world that we inhabit, I have been thinking a

great deal lately about hope. In the middle of such a chaotic world, where can we find

hope and learn to focus on it? How do we not surrender to despair?

Hope is defined as “a feeling of expectation and desire for a certain thing to happen”.

The scriptures speak much about hope. There are over 150 references to hope in the

New International Version of the scriptures. Jeremiah 29:11 speaks of God's plans for a

future and a hope, Isaiah 40:31 about renewing strength by hoping in the Lord, and

Romans 15:13 offers a prayer for God to fill believers with joy and peace as they trust

and hope in Him. Other verses like Hebrews 11:1 define hope as the assurance of

things hoped for and the conviction of things not seen, while Proverbs 23:18 promises

that hope will not be cut off.  All of this asks us to have faith in the loving and personal

God that we are in relationship with, to trust that he has ultimate good in mind for us.

I am encouraged each week when I gather with others at the Beloved Community at the

Trees. We are a people of great faith and hope. We don’t give in to the negativity of the

world around us. We lift one another up and encourage one another, helping one

another focus on the God who lives in and among us, who is very real and present with

us. Through the Blessing of the Water at the beginning of our time together we are

reminded of resurrection to a new life. In the Eucharist, as we partake of the elements

symbolizing the body and the blood of Christ, we are reminded of what Christ did to

usher in a new life, to bring a new creation, to bring a new heaven and a new earth in

which we enjoy the blessings of citizenship. When Julia (4 years old) and Brock (12

years old) share the bread and the wine (the Body and Blood of Christ) at the Eucharist

I have hope for the present and for the future. No power can take these things away

from us as they are eternal.

I try to focus on the things that make hope alive in me every day. Waking in the morning

gives me hope for another day. The advent of the Fall season then the coming of Spring

tell me that there are seasons where things are not as they seem, and new life will arise

again. Every time I visit my doctor and review my blood test results, I have hope for

another day, another month, and another year to enjoy God’s goodness and the love of

the people God has placed in my life. Every time I hear of a newborn baby, I have hope

of God’s continued creative hand in this world in which we live. And even when I hear of

the death of a member of the family of God, I have hope for the life to come, though I

mourn the loss of that person.

The Beloved Community is a place where we can practice hope. So, be encouraged as

we learn together to look for those things that bring us hope, and not despair.

Anthony Bishop