Weariness and hope....

Weariness and hope.....

Jeremiah 31:25 I will refresh the weary and satisfy the faint.”

Yesterday, our pastor spoke on weariness and hope, words chosen from the song, " Oh Holy Night".... How we may be weary, but we have astounding and abundant hope....

It was a flashback for me to one desperate night, I sat sobbing in a chair, reading Jeremiah, the weeping prophet...who seemed to weep beside me...we had been through torment and turbulence for weeks, months and then years with one of our children while he was painfully growing up...counseling, prayer, waiting, sleepless nights, jail time, courtrooms, drug rehab....we were living in a "glass house" it seemed, for all to see....we had friends going through the same thing....all being humbled and molded by the bad choices of our children...

What a growing  time.....but from that, I had more empathy for others, as I had woman after woman come through my office door needing counsel, a hug, a shoulder to cry on, encouragement through similar hard times in their homes...as I had been comforted, I could now comfort others...a tool...

Even though it was hard, I had to thank God for those years....He gave me more to give others...

thank YOU.....You give that we might give .....You comfort, that we might comfort....You love, that we might love...You satisfy the faint......You give hope even in desperate times..... 

"Oh, holy night
The stars are brightly shining
It is the night of the dear Savior's birth

Long lay the world in sin and error pining
Till he appeared and the soul felt its worth
A thrill of hope the weary world rejoices
For yonder breaks a new and glorious morn

Fall on your knees, oh, hear the angel voices
Oh, night divine, oh, night, when Christ was born
Oh, night divine, oh, night divine

Led by the light of faith, serenely beaming
With glowing hearts by His cradle we stand
So led by light of a star, sweetly gleaming
Here come the wise men from Orient land

The King of Kings lay thus in lowly manger
In all our trials born to be our friend
Truly He taught us to love one another
His law is love and His gospel is peace

Chains shall He break for the slave is our brother
And in His name all oppression shall cease
Sweet hymns of joy in grateful chorus raise we
Let all within us praise His holy name."

Josh Groban sings this so well on YouTube ....

Psalm 68:9 You gave abundant showers, O God; you refreshed your weary inheritance.

Isaiah 40:28-31 Do you not know?Have you not heard?The Lord is the everlasting God,the Creator of the ends of the earth.He will not grow tired or weary,and his understanding no one can fathom. He gives strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak. Even youths grow tired and weary,and young men stumble and fall; but those who hope in the Lordwill renew their strength.They will soar on wings like eagles;they will run and not grow weary,they will walk and not be faint. 

Jesus calling-December 15

Your longing for heaven is good, because it is an extension of your yearning for Me. The hope of heaven is meant to strengthen and encourage you, filling you with wondrous Joy. Many Christians have misunderstood this word hope, believing that it denotes wishful thinking. Nothing could be farther from the truth! As soon as I became your Savior, heaven became your ultimate destination. The phrase hope of heaven highlights the benefits you can enjoy even while remaining on earth. This hope keeps you spiritually alive during dark times of adversity; it brightens your path and heightens your awareness of My Presence. My desire is that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.

Not only so, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for our adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies. For in this hope we were saved. But hope that is seen is no hope at all. Who hopes for what he already has? But if we hope for what we do not yet have, we wait for it patiently.
—Romans 8:23–25

God did this so that, by two unchangeable things in which it is impossible for God to lie, we who have fled to take hold of the hope offered to us may be greatly encouraged. We have this hope as an anchor for the soul, firm and secure. It enters the inner sanctuary behind the curtain.
—Hebrews 6:18–19

May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.
—Romans 15:13