Living With Hope

We all live today, not yesterday, and possibly not tomorrow, although that is our hope. Let me explain my thoughts to you. We have all heard it said that today is the day, Carpe Diem, seize the day. We know that the Scripture tells us that in Ecclesiastes 3:1 KJV as we have considered recently, that-

To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven:

You can return to this section of the website and review what we previously considered regarding that thought.

Now, think for a moment about yesterday. You probably had a pretty good day. Things went surprisingly well. You had a good meal and spent time with family and friends. You had a time to rest and relax, so all in all not a bad day. Now, for some of you, that may not have been the case. Things are not going as you would like them to go. You had a doctor's appointment, and you heard a report you would rather have gone without hearing. There was a situation with family or a friend that just went wrong. You couldn't eat and you got little rest.

Most of us were more than likely somewhere in between these two, not a great day but not a bad one either. This goes on in all of our lives, and the longer we are here, the more change we see and hear about around us. So, when we say life is hard, what is it that we are trying to say? There is no doubt that life can certainly at times be very difficult and demanding. On the other hand, it can be quite enjoyable and even pleasant.

We were watching a history show the other night. You know, there are a lot of things we know, but there is so much that we don't know. As you consider history, there is much we know as fact, but much that is legend. When Nathan Hale was hanged as an American spy in the war for independence, there is no written account of his saying in in dying words that he regretted only having one life to give for this country. I mean, we have heard it, and it has been thought to that point and certainly inspired many throughout the history of our nation. Yet, we have no written proof historically.

The past tells us what man has done and the results of those actions. Good or bad, so that we might learn from the past. The Bible is the greatest source we have for understanding how man and then God reacts to man for the things man does. As much as the world is much different than the one spoken of the Old Testament, the characters are still the same, mankind. Mankind cannot seem to get out of its own way and do the right thing.

We are making the same, pardon my bluntness here, stupid mistakes that proved so wrong in the past. Mankind repeats the same mistake and expects a different outcome. Often, actually believing that it will be good for mankind. I am not here to speak of those vast examples, as I am sure you have some that are jumping out in your mind right now. It happens in individual lives, the lives of churches, and nations, and we pay a price for those decisions.

Wondering is something everybody does in some way or fashion. It can be a simple thought of wondering what something would be like if only we had done x instead of y. God works in the lives of mankind. He works in all of mankind to reveal Himself through creation and His Holy Spirit. Please know that there is so much we don't kno,w and what we know, we struggle with even sometimes understanding what it all means. I told Elaine the other day that the older I get, the less I understand. My faith and my trust in God are what allow me to go on each day. The simplicity of God's Word is so important for us all to hold on to.

Proverbs 3:5-6 KJV tells us-

⁵ Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding.

⁶ In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.

I fall back on this simple and profound truth every day. Maybe you do to, and if not, then take the opportunity to prayerfully consider it today. I have to trust God because He is my God and because His Word makes it clear He requires it of me. I could but choose not to think what I would do; I trust God that He is in control. Thus, by doing so I am able to acknowledge Him, and in so doing, I can know He will direct me.

Don't get me wrong; it doesn't mean I never do or won't do the wrong thing. I follow what I understand to be the right thing to do. Rather, I need to let God be God because I know I am not. That is living in hope.

In God's Grace,

Elbert Nasworthy