I looked around, and my life looked nothing like I wanted it to be. My marriage was in shambles. My children were heartbroken. My career was nonexistent, and I had no purpose in life. As you can imagine, it was a pretty dark season. I was depressed; at times I felt helpless. But, I still had an inkling of hope inside of me.
I pray that God, the source of hope, will fill you completely with joy and peace because you trust in him. Then you will overflow with confident hope through the power of the Holy Spirit. (Romans 15:13 NLT)
What I didn’t know back then, is that the sliver of hope came from God. His Spirit was calling me…leading me…trying to show me a vision of where I am now.
God is the source of all hope.
I do not know where you are in life. I have no idea how bad your situation is. But if you're reading this, I know it’s because you have an inkling of hope inside of you. Something inside of you is telling you that life will get better. Something inside of you is telling you to hope for something more…to believe that something new can manifest in your life. And, I want you to know that the nudge of hope that you’re feeling is the voice of God.
He’s speaking His word over you.
For I know the plans I have for you,” says the Lord. “They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope. (Jeremiah 29:11 NLT)
God wants you to know that His plan for you is so much better.
You do not have to settle for where you are now. You don’t have to settle for the bad or unfulfilled marriage. You don’t have to accept the diagnosis. You don’t have to accept the financial hardship or the lack of purpose that you may have. Yes, you can acknowledge it, but you do not have to agree with it. Instead, choose to agree with the good future that God has for your life. Choose to be made new in Christ.
This means that anyone who belongs to Christ has become a new person. The old life is gone; a new life has begun! (2 Corinthians 5:17 NLT)
I want us to pause for a moment so that this scripture can really sink in…It says that when we belong to Christ, our old life is gone…we are a new person…and we receive a new life.
Now, I want you to think about your life. Did it transform when you accepted Christ? Is your mind transformed? Is your heart transformed? Is your marriage and family transformed? Are your finances transformed? Are you walking with a new purpose? If you answered no to any of those questions…consider that you may not be living the new life that God has for you.
New life is a promise in Christ.
I want to make this very clear. God has promised us a new life. He has promised us transformation. But we have to believe it. We have to take that sliver of hope inside of us and hold on to it. We have to hold on because that is the only way that we will ever experience the promises that God has for us.
When I began seeking my new life, I pursued healing in my marriage first. But I want to highlight what that pursuit looked like. I wasn’t a woman full of faith at the time. I was broken. I thought the chances of reconciliation were slim. But, I heard the testimony of a couple that God transformed, and it gave me the little bit of hope that I needed to believe. I didn’t have a lot of faith, but I used the faith that I had, and I held on until God’s promise was fulfilled in my life.
“You don’t have enough faith,” Jesus told them. “I tell you the truth, if you had faith even as small as a mustard seed, you could say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it would move. Nothing would be impossible.” (Matthew 17:20 NLT)
One of my favorite pastors says that, “All you have is all you need.” If you only have a little bit of faith, that’s all you need. God has given you the faith that you need for this season of your life. If you have hope…If you have faith…use it. Believe from where you are now. If you continue to believe…if you continue to hold on…God will follow through. He will fulfill His promise. But that doesn’t mean that your transformation will be immediate.
Sometimes things get worse before they get better.
I know this doesn’t sound good, but it is true. The work of God doesn’t always look like the work of God, and He works in mysterious ways. What do I mean? Well in my case, my marriage got far worse before it got better. But don’t take my word for it… think of the story of Joseph son of Jacob in the bible. God promised him that he’d become a prominent man, but first, he had to endure slavery and false imprisonment. Also, think of David. He was promised the throne of Israel, but instead of being crowned king, he was forced to run for his life. In both of these scenarios, the situation got much worse before it got better. But, we must also remember that God’s prophecy over their lives was fulfilled in the end.
I feel that it’s important for us to discuss this, because many times we look at our situations and say, “Well, it’s getting worse. That must mean that it’s not God’s plan for me to be blessed in this area.” But…this is simply not true. God’s plan is for good even when things don’t look good. So, if the situation isn’t looking good in the present, we must know that He will turn it around for our good, and He will bring good from it.
The word of the Lord never fails.
For the word of God will never fail.” (Luke 1:37 NLT)
God spoke healing over my marriage, and His fulfillment of that promise proves that His word never fails. But that’s not all. Soon after, He began giving me vision for my purpose, my finances, and other areas of my life. He showed me that I didn’t have to remain where I was. He showed me how much my life could be transformed. And right now…my life is completely different. He has taken a broken, depressed, anxious, hopeless girl, and He has given me a new life with a new purpose. He has shown me that all things can be made new.
What has God spoken over you? What do you have hope for?
Has He shown you a vision of a transformed life. Maybe He’s shown you what your marriage can look like restored. Maybe He’s shown you what your family can look like restored. Maybe He’s given you a vision of you walking in purpose. Or maybe He’s shown you what it looks like to walk with peace and joy. Whatever it is, believe in it. Believe that you can have the good things that He has planned for you. It doesn’t matter how far gone your situation is. You Father is a waymaker. He specializes in doing the impossible in impossible situations. So stop talking yourself out of the promises of God, and agree with Him. Lay down your life, and pursue the new life He has for you.
Prayer
Heavenly Father, thank you for sending your Son to die on a cross for me. Thank you for washing my sins away, and thank you for giving me an opportunity to live a new life in you. Today, I am making the decision to grab ahold of that new life. I am laying down the plans that I have made for myself, so that I can pursue the life that you have for me. I believe that through Christ, all things are made new. I believe that you will transform my heart and mind. I believe that you will transform my family. I believe that you will transform my health and finances. I declare that I will continue to hope until I see everything that you have planned for me. I love you, Father. In Jesus’ name, amen.
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