Life Is Hard, but God Is Good

Life Is Hard, but God Is Good
Thora L. Anderson

I. Introduction

II. What Is Hope?

A. New Testament definition of hope:

1. Noun

a. (Elpis) “Happy anticipation of good” or “The object upon which hope is fixed”

2. Verb

a. (Elpizo) “To trust in/to trust on”

B. As Christians, we have hope!

C. Tertullian said, “Hope is patience with the lamp lit.”

III. Problems Occur When We Place Too Much “Hope” in Anything Besides Jesus! (Wealth, Power, Pleasure, Kids, Etc.)

A. Proverbs 13:12 (NLT) “Hope deferred makes the heart sick.”

B. Minirth-Meier counseling clinics report that a common characteristic of advanced burnout is the of hope.

IV. Our Only Real Hope Is .

A. Psalm 39:7 (NLT) And so, Lord, where do I put my hope? My only hope is in you.

Psalm 71:5 (NLT) O Lord, you alone are my hope.

B. When I pray for more hope for someone, I’m actually praying for more of in them.

C. Jesus is our , even when we don’t realize it.

V. Lamentations 3:1-26

A. Verses 1-16 are very “I” and “me” centered.

B. When hope is , we become very “I-centered.” Then, we move toward lost peace, lost fruitfulness, lost strength, and toward gaining pain, bitterness and misery.

C. Jeremiah’s mind begins to be directed toward truths about —rather than his circumstances.

1. Verse 21 – Yet I still dare to hope when I remember this….

2. In verses 22-23, Jeremiah’s mind is refocused on God.

a. Where are focusing?

D. Verses 24-26

1. We must not to get God and life mixed up!

VI. Conclusion: We have to choose to focus beyond our circumstances and on God.