Get Your Hopes Up

"Don't get your hopes up."

I've begun preparing for the post-graduation realm by looking at jobs and preparing my resume, and while for the most part I have no idea what I'm doing, there are a few opportunities that can't help but stir excitement and passion in my spirit. But the more I get stuck in my head, the more overwhelming and intimidating the future appears; and I subconsciously prepare for the worst by whispering this phrase...

"Don't get your hopes up."

The other day, I was thinking about some friends of mine and how I wish they would commit to coming to church or lifegroup with me so that they could have just one encounter with Jesus that would begin to change their lives. I found myself discouraged and disappointed, thinking... 

"Don't get your hopes up." 

Sometimes I am lonely. I know the Lord is for me, and in Him I have all that I need. He has purposes and plans and dreams for me beyond what I can picture, yet I wonder if I will ever stop experiencing seasons of loneliness that settle around me like a thick, heavy cloud. In an attempt to ease my anxiety, I repeat over and over...

"Don't get your hopes up." 

I pray this doesn't sound like you; but if it does, you're not alone. And even if you never purposefully tell yourself this phrase, how many times do you subdue hope under the cover of realism? 

Something the Lord began to challenge was my belief in every part of His character, which meant believing He is the God of all hope (Romans 15:3). If I believe that He is a God of love and grace and mercy, peace, kindness, joy, forgiveness... then I must also believe that He is a God of hope, and that His desire is that we should practice and grow in this trait as much as the others. 

But for some reason, hope seems so much harder to embrace. We don't want to be let down or disappointed. Hopelessness is a defense mechanism that protects us from experiencing hurt and pain. 

And I would say that we have the right to fear these things if our hope is found in anything other than Christ. 

We are going to be let down and disappointed if our hope is built on ourselves, our circumstances, or the people in our life. These things will fail and break, because they are not strong enough or worthy enough to bear the weight of hope. Without Christ, we have the right to view the world in all of its tragedy and chaos through a hopeless lens.

Hope is not an emotion we can create out of hype. It cannot be created of ourselves simply because of a desire to be hopeful. 

The only One worthy of placing our hope in is Jesus.

He will never let us down. He will never disappoint. He will always show up, and He will always give us His very best. 

I can look at my situation with hope, because I know that God is faithful. He is good. His plans for me are good, and I have the power of Christ within me to bring change and light to any hopeless situation. 

These are promises He gives based on His Word and believing anything else is settling for less. Even being realistic is a form of settling. We don't get to be realistic, because a supernatural God does not operate in a realistic way.

So, people it's time to get our hopes up! I think Jesus calls us to get our hopes up, because He calls us to move mountains. I know I can't move mountains on my own, so Jesus is my only hope here. Have hope as high as the sky, because this is the never-empty, do-the-impossible, expecting-with-confidence kind of hope. 

"May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope." - Romans 15:13

Photography by Katie Price