A Hope that Gives Joy

I don't know what it is with me having this urge to blog about everything all of a sudden, but this is great. Well, I think it's great. You readers may have different emotions.


By now there is probably no doubt in your mind that my life stinks. If so, congratulations because I feel the same way much of the time.


Last night was pretty difficult. In fact, it was horrible. When my mind gets carried away with past or present circumstances, it's usually not a good thing, and last night that was the case. So I went to bed probably feeling a little bit like Martin Luther did in his day - or maybe more like Teddy Roosevelt.


The good news, however, is the good news - the gospel. It is good because it gives hope, a hope that has an end for which we strive:

When we all get to heaven, 

What a day of rejoicing that will be! 

When we all see Jesus, 

We'll sing and shout the victory.

Seeing what is the unseen, the fulfillment of hope, the end of salvation - it will all be the most wonderful and, quite literally, the most glorious undergoing ever to be tasted.


For the now, however, there is joy in our hope. There is joy because Jesus was raised, and we have fellowship in Him with God. We are a part of a function that will never be dissolved. We are the body, and we are growing through one another.


The past few days have given me great joy in the reading and praying of God's word. There is a filling in Scripture that can be tasted nowhere else, for in nothing other than God is satisfaction. Although the irony is stunning to me, I have found that I have the greatest joy when I am on my knees. I receive strength when I am weak. Out of desperation comes gladness.


My days are filled with songs of praise, for God has been my help.


In Him, I sing for joy.

Psalm 63 (ESV, emphases added)

O God, you are my God; earnestly I seek you;
     my soul thirsts for you;
my flesh faints for you,
    as in a dry and weary land where there is no water.
² So I have looked upon you in the sanctuary,
    beholding your power and glory.
³ Because your steadfast love is better than life,
    my lips will praise you.
⁴ So I will bless you as long as I live;
    in your name I will lift up my hands.

⁵ My soul will be satisfied as with fat and rich food,
    and my mouth will praise you with joyful lips,
⁶ when I remember you upon my bed,
    and meditate on you in the watches of the night;
⁷ for you have been my help,
    and in the shadow of your wings I will sing for joy.
⁸ My soul clings to you;
    your right hand upholds me.