As Christians, many things threaten to zap out our joy. A job loss, a sick relative, a wayward child, and a broken marriage, to mention but a few. As long as we are on earth, we are bound to muddle through various trials.
But how would God want us to respond when the world is closing in on us? Should we walk around feeling dejected, or should we chin up because of the hope we possess? Is it possible to exude joy through the varying seasons of life? Let’s explore what it means to be joyful in hope.
What Is Hope?
The Oxford dictionary defines hope as a feeling of expectation or desire for a particular thing to happen. For instance, when we say, “I hope the sun shines today,” we have no guarantee that the sun will peek out.
We are merely expressing our desire for the weather. As such, the worldly interpretation of hope is a sharp contrast to the hope the scriptures talk about.
The kind of hope painted in the scriptures alludes to a strong and confident…
