Head versus heart. What logically makes sense versus what brings me joy.
It’s interesting people often share they want the best for a person. And by that I think what they’re really saying is I want what makes the most sense. The best scenario. The most fruitful outcome. From their point of view, of course. Wisdom would dictate and all that…..
Hope though, seems to be more than getting by. More than logic. I’d say hope is like winning the war as opposed to just winning the battle. Hope equals being all in.
Delight also in the Lord, and He will give you the desires and secret petitions of your heart.
Psalm 37:4 [AMP]
I think the above verse is about what you really, really want.
Like the song, tell.me.what.you.want.what.you.really.really.want. Way down deep. More than I would like a donut about now. More even than I want another house or gosh, my computer is extremely slow, I’d sure like a new one.
I believe the desires of my heart are what I hope for. I also believe they are not ideas I dreamed up on my own. I think they were placed there. They are a part of me. I can’t walk away from them. I can’t wake up tomorrow with a new set. Sure, over time, I change and so do my hopes. But it’s not an automatic thing.
Hope is a word thrown around. I hope the sun shines tomorrow. I hope my team wins. I hope the price of gas stays under two dollars. Yet hope, true hope, seems to be something much more. More important. Deeper.
A friend pointed out last week that the Greek definition of hope is a strong and confident expectation.
I allow myself to have a strong and confident expectation. I allow myself to hope. And it’s a risky, dangerous allowance. Because it’s living from the heart. And the heart is easily hurt. I am often made to wait. And while the brain can ascertain waiting, the heart cannot. Or at least not as well. The heart is ready to move forward, hoping.
I believe to not hope is to settle. To accept less than the best. I am happy today. Fairly content. Strumming along. Yet I have items on a list which would make my world so much more full. Others would perhaps disagree, if they knew the desires of my heart. My hopes might seem unimportant or odd or unnecessary or even wrong. But my heart is my heart. And the desires that reside there are mine too.
Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer. Romans 12:12 [ESV]
Upon a Sunny Day 