August 30, 2010
by Colleen Swindoll Thompson
Hope is a buoyancy word. It takes a tsunami-like surge to keep it submerged. It’s difficult, I know, to hold on to the life preserver of hope when storms rage in your life, but let me encourage you to tighten your grip. Perhaps this poem, “When Hope Returns,” will help.
Despair, oh despair, you’ve taken my hope
You’ve taken my hope; forbidden, now hidden
Should she try to dance, to prance, enjoy romance
You cover and hover, oh . . . wretched despair
Choked by the ash, the crash, the smash
Hope returns resilient, undaunted
Forging, restoring, she changes, rearranges
Hope rebuilds, repairs, restores, returns
Hope has no anguish, bitterness, darkness
In suffering, hope is shining, singing, humbling
A star twinkling, hope is amazing, dazzling, sparkling
Hope resides when Christ abides,
I can dance in the rain, cast the pain, view loss as gain
My soul so free, the release, the peace
—Colleen Swindoll, 2009
Have you found lasting hope? It can only be found in God. Listen to this declaration from the great poet David:
You are my hope;
O Lord GOD, You are my confidence from my youth. (Psalm 71:5)
It is my hope that your hope returns, even if your situation seems hopeless, for nothing is hopeless with our God.