If I didn’t have hope here is where I’d be:
I’d be in a job that I didn’t find fulfilling.
I’d be either dating or married to someone I settled for.
I’d be in debt; monetarily as well as spiritually and
emotionally.
I’d be sitting in my church, needy, in a ‘hospital bed’,
looking to get what I could from the pastor, and not getting out of the ‘bed’
for someone who needed care and treatment.
I’d be caught up in sins and strongholds, thinking I could
never break free from them.
I’d be sitting in front of my TV screen conspiring about
whether or not Bin Laden was really dead, if the US has known where he was all
along, and if 9/11 was some fluke.
I’d be angry.
I’d be bitter.
I’d be cynical.
I’d be hopeless.
But damnit!!
I have hope!
And I REFUSE to live the rest of my
life as if I didn’t.
I guess I say this a lot, and maybe it goes unheard or
unrecognized as important, but
YOU CAN HAVE HOPE, TOO! Jesus isn’t some
feminized man with pedicured hands and his long luscious locks blowing in the
wind. My Jesus has calloused carpenter hands, a fierce passion for his bride,
and an outrageous anger towards those who try to mess with His Father’s
children. He also knows how to have a good time. He knew full well that life
was meant to be lived…and lived well.
With that said, here’s who I am and who I will be, because I
have hope:
I am pursuing a life that makes me want to wake up every
morning with joy and anticipation for what’s in store.
I am waiting for a man that I can share life with and who will lead me, our children, and
others to be strong, loving, considerate people.
I’m taking responsibility for finances, my emotional state,
and my spiritual relationship so that I can be and operate at my best.
I am part of the Church. I am here to help other people get
help, healing, and then hoist them into greatness. It’s one thing I know
that God has given me a passion for.
I am a saint…that sometimes sins. I know that my past does
not define my future. And that even though His grace covers my sins, I no
longer do (or don’t do) things out of obligation, but because I know it hurts
my relationship with my Father.
I am confident in the victory that I fight from. I know, and
operate out of, the understanding that for those who are in Christ Jesus, no
weapon formed against us will prosper. Not ever.
I am joyful.
I have peace.
I look for and expect the best.
And that is how I view life. Again I refuse to live my life any
other way. I 
am giving my life to see as many people come to a place of
freedom. I will die for the hope of glory to be in everyone. Because it is
then, that Christ will come to meet His pure spotless bride.
Please, don’t give up on hope.
“This
is the only time in history when I get to fight for God. This is the only part
of my eternal story when I am actually in the battle. Once I die, I’ll be in
celebration mode in a glorified body in a whole different set of circumstances.
But this is my limited window of opportunity, and I’m going to fight the good
fight for all I’m worth.”
-Joni Eareckson Tada
