My husband went through a month-long series on Sunday nights of this past month entitled, “Be a Hope Put’er In’er and Not a Hope Take’r Out’er.” All his messages were to put hope in marriages. It was so practical and good!
As I went through my week after those messages, I thought about others who need hope. Everyone is going through something difficult from time to time.
We all deal with:
- Illness
- Personal trials in relationships
- Financial struggles
- Heartaches
- Dealing with others’ sin that affects them
- Death
- Current events
So how can we put hope in and not take it out of folks?
You know how you pull up to the gas station and insert the nozzle into your car and then pump in the gas? That’s how we should be spilling into others’ lives and giving them hope! Pull the trigger and pour it in!
One of my favorite verses in Scripture is Romans 15:4
For whatsoever things were written aforetime were written for our learning, that we through patience and comfort of the scriptures might have hope.
What a good Father we have, Who gave us the Scriptures so that we could live lives that are hope-filled! We look in and we find promises that we can claim. We read psalms and we are comforted. We learn of people in the Bible like, Job, David, Jeremiah and Peter who went through hardships and we are encouraged by their lives and victories. Jesus is all through the Bible, and we remember that He came to live, die and rise again to give us the best kind of Hope!
So when we bump into others who are going through a difficulty of small or immense proportions, how can we put hope into them?
- I think the best answer is pretty clear – give them God’s Word. Any hope I can give is temporal – but God’s Word will be lasting and it will give hope that meets the soul’s need.
I’ve found that giving my human input, my stories of similar trials, my humanistic opinion, are empty and can even be hurtful. When I don’t know what to say, I can open the Scriptures with promises that will be just the balm that will instill the hope that is necessary. I do that for my own heart, and I must learn to do the same for others. - After the Scripture is given, and you pray with that person, touch them. Put your hand on their arm, or around their shoulders. Human touch is comforting.
- Look for a need that they might have.
- A meal
- A load of laundry done
- A caregiver for their child for a couple hours so they can nap
- A gift card for coffee
- A change of scenery. Invite them out!
Let’s be on the lookout this week for times when we can pump Hope into others, rather than draining it out of them!
Maybe you’re one who needs some hope today. Let me remind you that God sees. God is bigger than your trial. He is at work even when you can’t see it. Keep your eyes upward at a God Who is your hope!
RefreshHer 