Email 
Bookmark 
Print The Power of Hope
Subject: The Power of Hope
Date: August 6, 2001
Related Article: Why me, God? by Susan Martinuk
Hope gives us the will to go forward. It provides a strength that is indescribable. During this session we will discuss how you can find hope and rely on it's power. If we have hope, we can find our way through difficulties.
· Why is there power in hope?
· We seem to be drawn towards hopeful people, why is that?
· In what should we anchor our hope?
· How does the Bible offer hope to us?
· How do we discover hope amidst our challenges?
ost
What about the topic at hand Hope Cause i really need some now
............................ faith joined.............
jw
Hi, mamaj and faith.
cwt
THE POWER OF HOPE
............................ faith left.............
............................ faith joined.............
faith
hi
cwt
Hello Again everyone!
mamaj
hi everyone
cwt
Glad you could all join us...tonight's topic is the power of hope...
cwt
Before we get started, let's open in prayer
............................ Jean left.............
lost
sounds great to me
mamaj
who starts
cwt
Lord, We commit this time to you and ask for your Spirit to direct our conversations and teach us about the power
of hope. Amen
lost
amen
mamaj
amen
jw
amen
cwt
Is this your first time lost, and mamaj?
faith
amen
mamaj
yes
lost
yes
cwt
So glad you could join us then...we run a moderated chat room on a given topic...so I will ask some of the
questions for us to talk about, but feel free to ask others as well...
cwt
For starters, Why is ther power in hope?
lost
ok
jw
I think it is vital for meaningful life.
lost
to help us look foward to brighter things when we are feeling lost
mamaj
If we don't have hope we are powerless
faith
through prayer we have hope
cwt
So true!
............................ lambslove joined.............
cwt
welcome lambslove!
jw
Hi, lambslove
faith
hey
lost
hi lambslove
lambslove
Hi! I'm new here.
cwt
Without hope, we lose our focus
lost
im also new lambslove
............................ Rainbow joined.............
cwt
Glad you could join us lambslove...we always have a couple of newcomers in every room
lost
Hello rainbow
cwt
Just join right in!
mamaj
his rainbow
cwt
Hi rainbow
faith
hi
lambslove
Thanks. Hi rainbow.
cwt
We are just starting to talk about the power of hope...
Rainbow
Hi everyone
cwt
what happens when we lose hope?
jw
I remember a time a few years ago, when I felt I had to search for specific reasons for hope.
............................ Husker joined.............
lambslove
We get depressed.
cwt
Welcome Husker!
lost
right now im having a hard time finding hope its just like in one second it was taken away
cwt
Do you want to give us details lost?
lost
sure
lost
I miscarraiged my baby and just feel so alone and hopeless
cwt
All of us have gone through times when we feel like we have lost hope
cwt
I am so sorry lost
faith
the power of prayer will strengthen you
lost
thank you
cwt
I miscarried twice, so I can understand what you are going thru...was it your first?
lost
I pray every night and ask god to help me
faith
He will
lost
yes it was
cwt
That makes it even harder...
cwt
Can we pray for you right now before we go on?
Husker
He will find you on your knees.
lambslove
Don't forget to turn to the Comforter, lost. When I went through my worst times, He was the only thing that got me
through sane.
lost
thats ok thank you for the offer
cwt
Father, I lift up lost before You right now. You know her grief. Remind her often that Your grace is sufficient right
now. Comfort her the way only You can. Amen
faith
amen
mamaj
amen
lambslove
amen
lost
amen
Husker
amen
lost
thank you
mamaj
My husband is battling cancer and hope is what we cling to
cwt
One of the verses that really gave me comfort when I lost my first at 13 weeks was that 'the God of all comfort
would comfort me with the comfort that I could in turn comfort others
Husker
Hope is Christ Jesus
cwt
That is a difficult situation as well mamaj
mamaj
Yes, but knowing that
cwt
When I think of what to anchor our hope in, I think of the old hymn....my hope is built on nothing less than Jesus
and His righteousness
mamaj
God is in charge of good and is what gives us hope
jw
Sometimes it is only a single promise, or a single thing to be thankful for, that can help get me through a tough time.
cwt
Good point jw!
faith
focusing on blessings can help when down and out
lambslove
I know it's hard to believe, but nothing comes to us except through the hand of God, even the suffering.
cwt
When going thru a really difficult time I used to cling to the verse, "My grace is sufficient for You"
cwt
that's so true faith!
cwt
Looking for even one thing to be thankful for can give us hope
jw
My verse during a rough spot was "Shall not the Judge of all the earth do right!"
faith
the opportunity to "chat" can be a blessing
cwt
Definitely!
lambslove
Sometimes suffering is the greatest blessing, because it forces us to cling to God for hope and peace.
jw
Hard to see that one at the time, though, lambslove.
mamaj
Knowing that Jesus promised to be with me always makes the day to day grind bearable
cwt
That's true lambslove...but we cannot always see that in the middle of it
cwt
Has he battled cancer for a long time already mamaj?
mamaj
two years
lambslove
I know, that's why often God will start to build us up with "little sufferings," to prepare us for the bigger problems,
to make us ready to turn to Him in a bigger way.
faith
YEW
Husker
everyone celebrate children were saved today!!!
faith
oops...yes
............................ marlo joined.............
lambslove
Hi marlo
faith
hi
Rainbow
My mother died of cancer, I know how you feel
cwt
welcome marlo!
Husker
welcome
Rainbow
Hi Marlo
lost
hi marlo
marlo
thank youi
cwt
It is when we are grieving that we most need hope
jw
I agree, cwt.
lambslove
Amen to that cwt
mamaj
Its hard to watch the way he is declining
cwt
Is he a Christian?
mamaj
yes, thank 'god
lambslove
But when he arrives in heaven , he will be completely healed
marlo
But it's still hard, isn't it?
mamaj
praise
mamaj
god
Rainbow
Praise God!
lambslove
Yep!
mamaj
Yes it's hard
Husker
is anyone a pastors wife?
faith
Healing comes in God's time and place
cwt
It is still hard to watch our loved ones suffer...can we pray for you before we go on?
lambslove
But sometimes we inhibit that healing by choosing to remain in the grief
mamaj
I have to seek God's grace daily
cwt
Father, I want to lift mamaj and her husband to You tonight. They need an extra measure of your Grace as they go
thru this difficult time. Give them Your strength for each day, and remind them often that You are right there beside
them, carrying thru this time. Amen
............................ lost left.............
lambslove
amen
............................ lost joined.............
faith
amen
marlo
amen
mamaj
amen thank you Father
Husker
amen
cwt
lost, did you just get bumped out?
lost
no hit a button
cwt
We haven't had that problem for a long time, but had problems the other night as well...
cwt
Oh good...not that you hit the button, but that you weren't bumped! :)
lambslove
Sometimes it isthe image of Jesus carrying me that was the only thing that got me through a bad place. Anyone
else?
mamaj
yes
faith
yes...footprints in the sand
cwt
The poem 'Footprints' is a good reminder!
jw
For me, sometimes it was climbing into the Father's lap.
Husker
totally agree
cwt
I like that image too jw...
cwt
in His lap with His arms around me...telling me that it will all be alright!
marlo
For me, it's often knowing that Jesus wept too. He knows how I feel.
cwt
So true marlo!
cwt
He wept and He grieved!
lambslove
Sometimes I imgined Jesus carrying me across a tightrope, and me begging like a little child, "Please Lord, don't
drop me." Somehow it gave me comfort to know that we were now going His way, not mine.
jw
I recently read someone's meditation regarding Jesus and Lazarus.
mamaj
how marvelous to have a Savior who knows me inside and out
jw
Which is more amazing, raising the dead, or serving a God who weeps?
faith
good thought
lambslove
Serving a God that even feels for us at all is amazing to me!
cwt
I know what you mean jw
marlo
A God who weeps - that's really something. I'll have to think more about that!
lost
serving a god who weeps
jw
He understands our deepest pain...sometimes I'm learning that deep pain helps me understand just a little bit of
His.
cwt
Another promise that has really helped me is knowing that Jesus is interceding on my behalf(Hebrews)...but not
only that, He has already been where I am and interceded for me before I go thru that valley
lambslove
Good point jw
cwt
So true jw!
mamaj
both show his deep love for us, to weep and to give us back our loved ones
lost
my grandmother has a jesus who is crying its the most beautiful thing I have ever seen
lost
it shows how real this man is that yet none of us has seen
Husker
I love to sing the song...shout to the Lord, all the earth let us sing, Power and majesty, praise to the King
Mountians bow down and the seas will roar, At the sound of your name, I sing for joy at the work of your hands
Foreever I'll love you, forever I'll stand Nothing compares to the promise I have in You.
lambslove
When He wept because Mary and Martha were crying, it touched me in a deep way. I knew then that everytime I
weep, He weeps with me.
cwt
That's one of my favorites as well Husker
mamaj
how beautiful thanks for the song
marlo
Sometimes when something hard happens, and it seems God's just saying "no, no, no" to me, I feel like He's just a
mean ol' ogre. But remembering that he's hurting with me, yet still choosing not to change the circumstances helps
me to trust that he knows what He's doing even when it doesn't seem like it.
cwt
Not only does He weep with me, but it tells me in psalms that He stores all of my tears in a bottle...none are
wasted
faith
i must sign off. thanks. goodnight all.
jw
good night, faith.
cwt
Thanks for joining us faith. Come again!
lambslove
I wonder what He'll do with all those tears?!?
faith
will do. bye
............................ faith left.............
cwt
I always say that mine are stored in a ten gallon drum...I have cried so many!
mamaj
turn them to jewels for our crown
cwt
I like that thought mamaj!
Rainbow
How beautiful!
............................ 2ndtimearound joined.............
cwt
He does tell us that He redeems everying...even the years that the locusts have eaten(Isaiah)
cwt
welcome 2ndtimearound!
lost
i must also begoing I need to be at work for 5 am thanks all for words of wisdom and things to think of when I am
down
lambslove
I don't know... if the streets are paved with gold, I don't think we'll care much for jewels. There must be another
reason he keeps them. To water the Tree of Life?
Rainbow
Hello!
jw
As I thought about "hope" for tonight, I was reminded of Isaiah 40---they that hope/wait on the Lord will renew
their strength...run & not go weary.
cwt
Come again lost!
jw
Lost, hope you can come again.
cwt
Good verse jw!
lost
I will
lost
good night
............................ lost left.............
lambslove
And no one who hopes in the Lord will be ashamed.
jw
oops, grow, not "go" weary.
marlo
What does it mean, then, really to hope in the Lord?
cwt
It is so good to be reminded that as we allow God to control our lives, even in the midst of the tuff times, He fills us
with His Holy Spirit, and it is His Spirit that gives us hope
lambslove
To put your future in the hands of God, I think.
Rainbow
I think it means that no matter what he'll be there for you
Husker
To hope in the Lord, is to trust fully.
marlo
And to trust that he really does love us and knows what he's doing in the big picture of our lives? Sometimes I
forget.
cwt
the word for hope and wait is similiar
mamaj
to believe that he is able to do what he says he will do and never let doubt come between us
marlo
Dontcha just hate waiting, though! But some of God's greatest work in my life has come after periods of awful
waiting and wilderness.
jw
"Wait" is never a strong area for me--but I think it is an active waiting that he desires.
Husker
Ps. 42 and 62 are great for Hope
lambslove
I'm an architect, and sometimes it's hard for my clients to understand the blueprints, they have to trust me to make
their house come out right. I guess we have to trust God the same way, since we can't see or understand His
blueprints
mamaj
exactly
jw
Maybe sometimes we should be glad we can't see them ahead of time.
cwt
yes they are..
marlo
oooo, good analogy!!!
lambslove
Amen to that!
Husker
Amen...jw
cwt
It is hard for us to remember that waiting time is never wasted time in God's economy
jw
true
cwt
Hope is taking God at His word, waiting on Hime to do what He has promised He will do!
cwt
And remember, that God's word is truer than anything else!
Husker
God's economy....interesting....
cwt
Our circumstances, our feelings, our situations
lambslove
Maybe because we live such hectic lives, we can't bear to wait or understand the value of waiting?
marlo
good point lambslove!
cwt
We live in an instant society...so we want instant hope too!
cwt
But instead God charges us to wait...hope in Him....
............................ 2ndtimearound left.............
lambslove
Just add prayer and get instant happiness and peace!
jw
Have you ever "borrowed" hope?
Husker
Does hope tie into GRACE?
cwt
definitely!
lambslove
What does it mean to "borrow hope"?
marlo
jw, what do you mean?
jw
I mean, when you can't see it clearly yourself, depend for a short time on someone else's faith and understanding of
God?
cwt
I see what you mean
cwt
I think that is what happens when we are walking through a really dark valley and others pray for us
lambslove
I don't think I have, but it sounds like an interesting idea. Like if you are waiting in a hopital for news of a loved
one and someone waits there with you?
cwt
Or when you don't know how to pray, but someone prays with you or for you
jw
After my miscarriage, God brought the verse regarding "a hope and a future" to me through 3 or 4 different
sources. I couldn't imagine it, but I decided to believe it anyway.
Rainbow
I named my daughter Hope and everyone says what a beautiful name!
lambslove
That verse has been important to me many times, jw
Husker
Hope is my anchor!
mamaj
I have leaned on others for strength but my hope is always in the Lord to act and change the circumstance and
even my heart
marlo
jw - How has that verse worked out in your life since the miscarriage?
Husker
I love the name Hope....a student in my class last year was named Hope.
cwt
Yes I love that verse....Jer.29:11
jw
marlo, it seemed an impossibly tough time, but that time really strengthened me for times since then...
cwt
I have prayed that verse sooooo many times in my life
jw
when I've needed to know God in a deeper way than I did before the miscarriage.
Husker
God is powerful!!!
cwt
For myself, but also for my children, especially when they are going through difficult times, and I know that I
cannot fix it but just need to trust that God has plans for them
lambslove
Do you find it harder to have hope when you aren't going to church or Bible study much?
marlo
Yes!!!
Rainbow
yes
cwt
For sure...it is hard for that log to keep burning when you drag it away from the campfire!
lambslove
LOL! cwt!
cwt
That is why we are told in Hebrews not to forsake the assembling together!
mamaj
stay plugged in to the source for true hope
marlo
Sometimes the last thing you feel like is going to church or Bible study - want to just wallow - but it's just the thing
that God wants to use to strengthen us.
Husker
For I know the plans I have for you says the Lord...plans to give you hope and a future...
cwt
But sometimes when we are really hurting, we don't necessarily want to hear others give us pat answers
marlo
No kidding!
cwt
I know what you mean marlo...
mamaj
true
cwt
Sometimes I just got tired of crying in church all the time...
jw
Interesting how "hold onto hope" is in the same paragraph w/ "don't forsake the assembling"
Husker
What are PAT answers?
cwt
true jw!
mamaj
I feel like I have to wear an everything's ok mask even in church to keep from hearing the platitudes
............................ teapot joined.............
cwt
Pat answers....you know...it will all work for good....
............................ liz joined.............
cwt
welcome teapot!
mamaj
God's in control
cwt
Hi Liz
teapot
Thanks!
lambslove
Do you think it's because we center more on ourselves when we are hurting, and we have a bit of selfishness going
on? When we go to church, we keep more centered on God and His promises? Maybe we like the self-focus and
don't want to come out of it?
cwt
You know what I mean right mamaj? You've heard them
cwt
Not necessarily....
jw
what do you mean, lambslove?
cwt
But sometimes that is probably right lambslove!
mamaj
Yes, I know people mean well but I need to be able to say how it is not what they want to hear
Husker
Tha's the problem with American churches everyone wears a mask....we need to be real with our sisters and
brothers in Chrsit
cwt
because it isn't easy!
cwt
And it hurts to watch your husband hurting and struggling
lambslove
It kinda works that way for me sometimes. I get to liking dwelling on my pain, and I don't want to feel better,
because it's a stong emotion, more intense than joy, so we hold on to it so we don't feel nothing?
............................ liz left.............
marlo
Best thing that a friend at church's done for me is just say "Gee, that's so hard. I'm going to be praying for you" and
not try to make me feel better. People have to realize it's okay to feel bad!!
cwt
That's when we have to go back and give God control of our lives again lambslove
cwt
you are right marlo
lambslove
Yep.
marlo
Not wallow it in though, like you said lambslove
............................ teapot left.............
cwt
But sometimes we do have to confess that we are bitter, or self-centered in the midst of the pain, because that
happens too
mamaj
I agree marlo
Husker
Juliet...any prayer concerns?
lambslove
At some point though, you have to decide whether to get over whatever is hurting you or to live in it for the rest of
your life.
cwt
Then we need to give back control and allow the Holy Spirit to fill and empower us...He is the one that gives us
the thoughts of the Father and helps us to have hope in the midst of the pain
cwt
So amidst our challenges, how do we discover hope?
marlo
It helps me to to tell God, "I'm feeling really lousy. Heeelllllppppp!"
cwt
I hear you marlo...
jw
Psalm 119 talks several times about our hope in God's Word.
cwt
I live with chronis pain...I tell Him that often!
cwt
Good psalm jw...
marlo
And to remember his faithfulness in the past, even with little things.
mamaj
to be brutally honest with the Father about my pain and accept his love and comfort
Husker
You all need to learn how to celebrate more in the Lord!!! People get to caught up in the knowledge...
jw
and that He's the same yesterday, today and tomorrow, marlo
cwt
I actually did a study on waiting(or hoping) on the Lord from psalms last year...
cwt
our entire family was waiting....in some way or another....that was interesting
marlo
jw - amen!
jw
I'd like to hear more about that sometime, cwt
lambslove
Everyone is always waiting on something, aren't they?
marlo
seems that way
cwt
Taught me lots on God's character...that's why I am to wait on Him
Rainbow
I also have been going through a very difficult time the last year and it might be just the start of something.
lambslove
How so rainbow?
cwt
Because He is sovereign, omnipotent, omnipresent, doesn't change, etc/
Husker
How are you all reaching out to non believers?
cwt
Why is that rainbow?
Rainbow
It has brought me much closer to Him.
marlo
Tell us more, rainbow, please
cwt
Wneh we are going thru dark valleys it is often easier to reach out to non believers...because they see that we have
hope and they don't
Rainbow
.ISo hard to talk about1
mamaj
i've been prayer walking my neighborhood, husker and helping with the homelwss shelter
cwt
Good for you mamaj!
lambslove
Can anybody name a time when hoping and waiting on the Lord worked out better than they dreamed?
cwt
yes... many times!
marlo
mamaj - have you read the new book Prayerwalk by Janet Holm McHenry?
cwt
is it good marlo?
marlo
excellent book
lambslove
It might build our hope to hear about it, cwt.
mamaj
I read one but I don't think it was by Janet
............................ bobby joined.............
cwt
Welcome bobby
marlo
hi bobby
lambslove
hi
Rainbow
Hello
bobby
Type HEREthank you
Husker
Praise God!!! Mamaj that's awesome , loving your neighbors is sometimes the hardest thing to do!!
Husker
hello
bobby
what are we talking about
cwt
Losing our first child was incredibly painful...but God gave back to me....I have three wonderful kids who love the
Lord....But I still remember the darkness following that first loss
cwt
We have been talking about the power of Hope
mamaj
especially when we are in pain, but it helps me keep my focus on Jesus and not me
cwt
Our hour is coming to a close....but we will be back on Wednesday and Thursday again...look below for the
schedule
Husker
How do you all share the God News of the Lord?
marlo
cwt - thanks for sharing.
bobby
my daughter helped another break into her cousines house i need hope
cwt
That is hard bobby...how old is she?
bobby
she is only 15
bobby
and got with the wrong crowd
lambslove
Is this the first time she has been in trouble?
bobby
what
cwt
We have shared Jer 29:11 several times tonight...maybe that would be a good verse for you to claim for her
bobby
yes
cwt
God knows the plans He has for her...for her welfare and a hope, and not for calamity
cwt
even though it looks like calamity right now
lambslove
Prayer and a good example might be the best thing for her right now.
marlo
What does hope look like for Bobby when it seems like this girl will continue to choose poorly?
cwt
I hate to have to bring this chat to a close, but we do try to keep it to one hour....but you can all stay in and
continue to share and pray if you like...
bobby
ive tried setting a good example
bobby
i can say that for sure
cwt
Can we pray for you and your daughter right now bobby?
bobby
please do
............................ alt joined.............
cwt
Father, we do want to bring bobby and her daughter before You right now. Bobby's heart is breaking for her
daughter right now. But as we have talked about tonight, so is Your heart
cwt
Show bobby how to respond and reveal Yourself to her daughter. Give bobby hope as she goes through this dar
time in her life. Amen
cwt
Welcome alt...
lambslove
I know you have been a good example, but her friends evidently haven't. She needs friends who don't break the
law. Bad company corrupts good morals, and good company reinforces good morals.
cwt
We are just finishing up our chat room on the power of hope.
cwt
We will actually be talking about this topic again at the end of the month, Thursday, August 30..
bobby
we talked about everything good friends morals
marlo
Thanks. Gotta go. Have so appreciated all your insights.
cwt
Let's just pray before we close
cwt
Father thank you so much for each woman who joined us tonight
mamaj
Bobby God doesn't condemn you for the choices your daughter is making, He loves you both
............................ alt left.............
lambslove
When kids fall in with the wrong crowd, things get bad. She needs to get away from those friends and get involved
with people who encourage her to do good things, not bad.
cwt
I have been so encouraged. Remind us as we go to pray for one another, and in the midst of the dark times, to
remember that You alone are the source of our Hope. Amen
cwt
Thanks so much everyone!
jw
thanks, cwt
............................ marlo left.............
cwt
It has been a great chat...join us again....
lambslove
thanks!
mamaj
thanks cwt
Rainbow
Beautiful nite
bobby
bye god bless
lambslove
Here too.
............................ Husker left.............
mamaj
god bless us indeed
jw
cwt, thanks...God is good
lambslove
Everyone
............................ Rainbow left.............
cwt
So glad you could join us mamaj...Do join us again
cwt
Good night everyone!
.............. Log stopped at Mon Aug 06 17:58:21 PDT 2001 ...........
