Get your hopes up

"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

On the morning of January 1st, 2023 I hit the shuffle play button on my phone and the first song to play was "Get Your Hopes Up" by Josh Baldwin. It was a bit of a God-moment as this phrase had been brewing as I searched Scriptures during Advent.

It wasn't the first time this phrase made an appearance in my life.

22 years ago, the greatest thing in my life, what I had placed all meaning and purpose and self-worth on, ended. I was completely shattered and wallowing in hopelessness. God, the lifter of my chin told me it was time to dream a new dream. So I did, I told Him the one thing that I felt would be great enough to replace my shattered dream. "Done", He said. From that day on, as I was still reeling and healing from my broken dream, the new dream s-l-o-w-l-y started to weave together. 5 years later, it came to pass.

Since then, there have been other hopes that have been fulfilled. And even some that haven't. Even the ones that haven't been fulfilled, have brought me closer to God, my ultimate and supreme hope.

But this January 2023, it felt like this phrase wasn't just for me. It was for you.

It's scary to hope. So many things are out of our hands and we feel like we are at the mercy of others, the universe, fate ... and God.

"May God, the source of hope, 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

Friend, what are you hoping for?

I believe there are two categories God is inviting you to get your hopes up for.

One is personal. What are some personal hopes? Some of you are in a very hard place. Cancer, death of a loved one, divorce, life-long struggles with anxiety and depression that you just can't seem to shake. Telling you to get your hopes up seems a bit cruel.

Some of you are just a little lost, not sure of what the next season will bring or even what you want. Some of you want friends, more finances, a better job or house, purpose, acceptance or for your life to somehow make sense.

God cares about those things. And He is inviting you to tell Him and trust Him.

The second category is your relationship with Him. You judge Him through the lens of your dad, former boyfriends, ex-husband or an uncaring boss. Oh beautiful one, get your hopes up...He is so real, so caring and so personal. The most wonderful Counselor, caring King, loyal Friend, and loving Father. He is the best thing...so good in fact that even if your category one hopes don't come to pass, you'll be ok because you have Him.

It's not just for others to have or experience; it is for you as well.

I believe in this season, God is wanting you to get your hopes up. And He would never say that if He didn't intend on coming through for you. It's been a hard few years for this world, but for those whose hope is in Him will find new strength (Isaiah 40:31). There is a season for everything. (Ecclesiastes 3) We are coming out of a hard season. And I believe, God is beginning a new season of hope, of joy, of freedom. There are signs of it everywhere.

Actually, there's a third category as well - the hope of heaven. We fear death so much. Nothing seems worse than death. But for those of us in Christ, it is the doorway to eternal paradise - the full fulfillment of all of our hopes. It is ours. There is a light at the end of the tunnel of suffering and heartache. Knowing this in the deepest parts of our bones, letting it capture our imagination, helps us endure. (Colossians 3:2) The heartaches and pain seem more manageable knowing one day...one day, all will be made right and we will live in that perfection forever.

So write down your dreams, your hopes in a letter to God. Read and absorb the promises in His Word. Isaiah 63, and the Psalms are great places to begin. Spend LOTS of time alone with God, over many days, weeks, months, years. You will not anchor to His hope without it.

I'm praying for you, beloved.

Defiant Joy

My unlikely favorite weapon to get out and stay out of a negative spiral.

Joy has always been a bit in the background. It's on my wall (I was planning on having the quote "My joy is full" surrounded by framed pictures on my wall but the procrastinator in me only ever got the word 'joy' done) and I've noticed that I have quite a few Christmas ornaments of the word. But like I said, it was always kind of in the background of my mind and reserved for those special times when the planets, and hormones and circumstances align and everything just feels right. Ahhh...joy.

2022 started without me having a word or theme for the year. I don't like putting pressure on doing that but kind of wait for the LORD to show me a theme or focus when He sees fit. But when negative and anxiety producing thoughts started beating me up during the Christmas break, it unexpectedly whispered to me, "I dare you to pick me and open me up".

What was I supposed to do with that?!

In my ongoing battle with negative thinking, I thought I had found the answer in truth, reciting Scripture, praise and worship music, and quiet time just being still or doing something relaxing like reading or doing a puzzle. But this time, none of those seemed to really making a difference like they had done so many times before.

So when joy whispered in my ear, I wasn't sure how to respond. How do you even choose joy? I don't like lying, pretending or making things up. I'm sure there are blog posts and books about it but I wasn't in the mood for that. I wanted joy itself to teach me directly.

At first it felt a bit like pretending. Joy is the emotion you get when things are good; a feeling of delight. So I started to do what at first felt like pretending - that everything my mind was screaming at me was "wrong" was actually good and right and that God was actually very happy with it (obviously not blatant sin but rather all the things we see as "not good enough"). So then, I acted like everything was right and good and that I was succeeding greatly. I allowed those feelings to continue bubbling up instead of rationalizing them away.

And then almost naturally, I started feeling a connection to heaven. Now this really did make me feel happy. I felt a strength and genuine joy take over and I was amazed. 'It didn't even take that long', I thought.

As I was taking down my Christmas tree, I began to really notice just how many joy ornaments I had. And it just seemed like this is the word God had for me for this year. It kind of made me smile. Joy seemed so unexpected. I guess I was expecting something a bit more serious. Sometimes we are tricked into believing Christianity is alway and only serious.

Now I don't want to reduce it to a fail-proof, cure-all gimmick because to me it feels way more sacred than that.

Joy aligns us with heaven and with God.

Joy aligns us with heaven's atmosphere and what is going on there. There is joy in heaven! God is joyful! Jesus is joyful! The angels are joyful! Psalms 16:11

"The joy of the LORD is our strength" Nehemiah 8:10

Joy is of the LORD, meaning it is something that He is; it is part of His character and also something He possesses and can give.

You don't have to wait for everything to be right or for you to be perfect to choose joy. In fact, I believe it is particularly when we feel down - on ourselves and our lives, that God wants us to connect with Him through joy.

And what does choosing joy result in? For me, it produces peace, gratitude to God, like I want to praise Him, a closeness with Him, and a supernatural strength and desire to do what is good and holy. If Jesus says to judge a tree by its fruit, (Luke 6:43) I would say that the fruit of choosing joy is good. I'm still not perfect at remembering to choose joy every time I feel in a rut, but I'm getting better. In fact, I'm not sure that God wants me to move on to another word or theme quite yet.

So I will keep choosing joy - often in defiance of what my own natural brain and sometimes the enemy's lies, want me to choose.

"Rejoice in the LORD always. I say it again: Rejoice!" Philippians 4:4

Peace - Advent, Week 4 Reading 5

The Great Commission - go tell everyone!

"Jesus came and told His disciples, "I have been given all authority in heaven and on earth. Therefore, go and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Teach these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you. And be sure of this: I am with you always, even to the end of the age."

Matthew 28:18-20

"'Look, I am coming soon, bringing My reward with Me to repay all people according to their deeds. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End.'"

"The Spirit and the bride say, "Come." Let anyone who hears this say, "Come." Let anyone who is thirsty come. Let anyone who desires drink freely from the water of life."

"He who is the faithful witness to all these things says, "Yes, I am coming soon!" Amen! Come, Lord Jesus!

May the grace of the Lord Jesus be with God's holy people."

Revelation 22:12-13;17, 20-21

"Hey Annie, would you like to help me with the women's conference?"

Me?! You need my help? You want my help?

My friend Tricia is a highly capable, extremely wise leader that I respect greatly and could easily do the job herself. So for her to ask if I wanted to come alongside her to help with one of the biggest events in our church made me sit up a bit straighter, stand a little taller.

And it made me see the women's conference from a different angle and made me love it even more. And to have a role, an inside perspective gave me a dignity and identity that at once humbled me but also strengthened me. To have a part to play in a fantastic event makes you feel like you belong.

The amazing thing is, this is what Jesus does to each of us. In fact, He goes a step further, taking any option other than yes off the table, He commissions us, commands us to go and tell everyone His Good News. The church, His holy people are His plan A for making sure everyone knows they can become children of God and has the opportunity to grow in the fullness of that identity before He comes back again.

You have a part to play, too. Jesus said you do. You belong in His Kingdom, doing what Kingdom people are commanded to do. He could do it Himself. But He wants you to have a part in it. Everyone is invited to receive the Good News. Who will you tell?

You won't be alone. You have the church and you have Him. There are thirsty people out there and we know how they can have living water. So sit up a bit straighter, stand up a little taller and let's go tell the world!