An Anchor Called Hope

December 5, 2016
5 min read
Written By

[lead dropcap="yes"]Have you ever had a dream that you've held on to so tightly, and worked so hard towards realizing, that even the slightest interference just might have thrown you off your game?[/lead]In life, we’re all working towards something. God places promises in our heart, and passions in our soul, that ultimately point towards something He wants to do through us: His vision for our life, our calling, our purpose.As we move into the Christmas season, we quickly realize the interesting dichotomy at play. The holidays are supposed to be a time of celebration and festivities but as the end of the year creeps up on us, we take an inventory of our lives, and realize that things simply didn’t always go as we anticipate. Some of us lost a loved one, others of us made little progress on the dream God birthed inside of us, so instead of the season of comfort and joy, the sting of disappointment and regret may linger.

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“Hope is a calm confidence that God is working even when I don’t see him working”Rich Wilkerson, Jr.

But this isn’t the time to delve into mind-over-matter theory, or wishful thinking to make the negative feelings magically disappear. But instead, to return to the steadying place of assurance called hope. This weekend, Pastor Rich reminded us of that anchor for our souls during the fluctuating seasons of our lives; an anchor of hope.

An anchor keeps the boat from drifting

There’s a tendency to get complacent in the calm. We don’t pray like we used to or read our bibles like we need to; then the drifting starts and the mind wanders. But the great thing about an anchor is that even in the calm waters, it secures the boat from drifting. The same can be said of the hope we’ve placed in God’s promises even during the mundane moments, that we realize these are the times to grow in our faith for the other seasons when a demand will be made of such faith.

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An anchor creates stability

It is not a question of “if”, but “when” each of us are going to experience a storm in our lives. When we do, we can start to get disappointed and settle for less just to play it safe. But this is the time to dig deeper in our trust of God’s purpose for our lives even when we don’t understand the plan. And that no matter the circumstances, we remain prisoners of hope.

Listen to the Full Message

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