Hopeth

Turn your Bibles to 1 Corinthians chap 13. 1 Corinthians chapter 13 and verses 4-8. We're going to continue through our series, a symphony of love. And we're finishing up the last couple of characteristics of love. As we go through these in 1 Corinthians chapter 13, beginning in verse number four, the Bible says that charity or love suffereth long and is kind. Charity envieth not. Charity vaunteth not self. Is not puffed up. does not behave itself unseemly, seeketh not her own, is not easily provoked, thinkketh no evil, rejoices not in iniquity, but rejoices in the truth, beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeeth all things, endureth all things, charity or love never fails.

Uh, as we open up the word of God here today, we want to talk about the characteristic there in in verse number seven where it says that love uh hopeeth all things. We talked about it bears all things and that love bears with the other person. Uh you know those of you who've been married for a while, you know there's certain things that you've had to kind of bear with all those years. My wife and I have been married 48 years and there's there's a number of things that she's had to bear with in my life uh just uh that she's had to deal with and and uh for all of these years because uh because of our love for one another.

And the same is true in reverse as well. And there are certain things that we just have to bear with those things and and uh some things that it it is just uh part of that relationship and some things can be changed or work on but we want to hold up like the pillars holding up the roof and and then cover over. The idea is to cover over not to focus on those things but to focus on the good in the relationship. And and then love believeth all things and that is that we're believing the best in the other person rather than the worst. that they didn't do it because they were trying to hurt you, but they did it because of some other reason.

And and to believe that they really do want to change and want to do better and and maybe they're struggling with those things, but there you want to believe the best in the other person rather than the worst. But then the next uh characteristic is that love hopeth all things. And and this is what you do when you've when you've be born with it. You bear that situation. and you believe the best in them, but things aren't changing, things aren't getting better, and you hope that this time is going to be different. You hope this time is going to be different. I I've titled this message hope rising.

And and the reason is when you define the word hope, the Bible says in Hebrews 11:1, now faith is the substance of things hoped for. Okay? The evidence of things not seen. In verse number six, but without faith is impossible to please him. For he that cometh to God must believe that he is and that he's a rewarder of them that diligently seek him. And so I want to focus that first part of the verse. Now faith is the substance of things hoped for. And faith and hope are different. In 1 Corinthians 13:11, uh you look there, it says what when I was a child, I spake a child, understood as a child, I thought as a child, but when I became a man, I put away childless things.

For no, now we see through a glass darkly, but then face to face. Now I know in part, but then I shall know even as I'm also known and now abideth faith, hope, charity, these things, these three, but the greatest of these is charity. Now, he's not talking about when we get to heaven because we won't need faith in heaven. We won't need hope in heaven, but we will have charity. We'll still have love in heaven, but he's talking about when the as the word of God is complete, he said, "These things abide. Faith, hope, and charity." And and faith and hope are different. Uh tomorrow we're having a uh Memorial Day picnic at our house and all of you are invited.

Uh it's going to be from 3 to 7:00 p.m. And uh you're welcome to come whenever you want and leave when you need to. And and we're getting the house all cleaned up and ready, the yard all cleaned up and ready. And and and tell you what, tomorrow I I have hope that it does not rain. You know what I'm talking about? When you're you know, uh now now faith and hope are different in this way. I have faith that the sun is going to come up tomorrow, but I have hope that it's not going to be covered with clouds and rain tomorrow. You see, faith and hope are different. Faith is the foundation, the substance of things hoped for.

It tells us in Hebrews 11:1, uh, turn over to Romans 5. Romans 5 and look at verses 2-5. Romans chapter 5 and beginning with verse number two. Romans chapter 5 and verse number two it says but whom also by whom also we have access by faith into this grace wherein you stand and rejoice in the hope of the glory of God and not only so but we glory in tribulation also knowing that tribulation work patience and patience experience experience hope and hope maketh not ashamed because the love of God is shed abroad to our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given unto us. Now notice the cycle here. You start with hope and you end with hope.

But in between you have these things. Tribulation work patience and patience experience experience hope. You see there's a uh the foundation of our hope is our faith in God. But faith is different than hope and that faith is the foundation but there's also a a cycle of hope. Again I have faith the sun's going to rise tomorrow. Uh but I have hope that it's not going to rain. They are different. It is the work of faith and labor of love that gives us patience and hope. Look at 1 Thessalonians chapter 1 and verse number three. I want you to turn over there and we're going to have it on the screen as well, but 1 Thessalonians chapter 1 and look at verse number three.

And what I want to do is I'm going to read this verse and uh I want you to see the emphasis here. It says, "Remembering without ceasing your work of faith and labor of love and patience of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ in the sight of God and our father." There's three different words that are used that are somewhat synonymous, but they're different. He talks about first of all the work of faith. That's energy. That comes from a word where we get our word energy from. And that means putting faith to work. Uh all around this building, we have plugs on the wall and they have power in those plugs, but that power is not doing anything until you plug into it and turn on.

You plug a vacuum cleaner and turn it on, it's going to pick up the all the dirt off the floor. You plug in a van to turn on, it's going to move the air through the room. Uh it it's power at work. You and I have the power of God through the Holy Spirit, through Jesus Christ in our lives. But we have to put that power to work by faith. And so faith is the is the work of faith is the energy or the movement of power in our lives. And then it's the labor of love. And that word labor is the idea of hard work. Uh love takes work. It doesn't just happen. You know, we talk about falling in love with somebody, but even when you fall in love with them, you still have to then live with them and work at loving one another.

And so there's a labor of love and then there's a patience of hope. The word patience here means perseverance is that we continue to hope in Christ. And so this this cycle that works in our lives of the of the work of faith, the labor of love and patience of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ. Now you can have faith without hope. Uh go over to Romans chapter 4 and look at verse number 18. Romans chapter 4. And look at verse number 18. Romans 4 and verse number 18. The Bible says, "Who against hope believed in hope that he might become the father of many nations according to that which was spoken, so shall thy seed be."

I was talking about Abraham when God told he's have a child his old age. Uh Abraham had faith in God, but he struggled with that hope, did he not? You can have faith without hope. He believed God that he said he'd have a child. But at the same time, he had really no hope because I'm just getting too old to have a child. Look, continue on. Verse number 19. And being not weak in faith, he considered not his own body, now dead, when he was about 100 years old, neither yet the deadness of Sarah's womb. He staggered not at the promise of God through unbelief, but was strong in faith, giving glory to God, and being fully persuaded that when he had promised, he was also able to perform.

Now, if you've ever read through your Bible, read the book of Genesis, read the story of Abraham, uh this is is very optimistic in the description of Abraham. In verse number 19, it says, "Being not weak in faith." In verse number 20, he staggered not at the promise of God. And verse number 20, be fully persuaded. Uh when I read the Old Testament story of Abraham and Sarah, uh that's not what I read. And and such it just shows the grace of God to give us more credit than we often deserve, does it not? And and he talked about, you know, Abraham, he struggled. They laughed at God. And and he had a he had to have another child for another woman because he was trying to fulfill the God God's promise in the flesh instead of trusting the Lord.

And and Abraham in all of this, he had faith in God. Abraham was known as a man of faith. uh but his but his hope sometime he struggled with that hope and and I don't know about you but I also struggle with hope you can have faith without hope and and and realistic faith gives realistic hope and in Ruth chapter 1 we have another story and verse uh in verse number 12 and 13 it says turn again my daughters go your way for I am too old to have an husband if I should say I have hope if I should have a husband also tonight and should also bear sons Would you tar for them till they were grown? Would you stay for them having husbands?

Nay, my daughters. Now, you know, this is a story of Naomi and um and how she was telling her the girls, these were his her daughter-in-laws. They had married her two sons. Her two sons had died. Her husband had died. Now, the tradition back in that day was that if your if your husband died, then you would marry his brother in order to continue on a family line. And uh she's telling him, "Listen, I I'm too old to have kids. And even if I had a husband, uh if I had a child, it would be years before he's old enough for you to marry. And I'm not going to hold you to staying here." See, she was being realistic in her hope.

She realized she didn't have that promise of God that you'd have a child your old age. And she realized that she was past the childbearing age. And she was being honest and realistic. And sometimes in our hope, we have to be honest with ourselves. We have to be honest with our situation. We have to be realistic about what we're dealing with. And uh and and so sometimes we struggle with hope, but we have to be realistic about it as well. And and faith also comes from God's word. In Psalms 130 verse number five, it says, "I wait for the Lord. My soul doth wait. In his word do I hope." You see, you have more hope when you have the word of God.

In Romans 10:17 it says, "So then faith come by hearing and hearing by the word of God." In Romans chapter 15 verse number four, "For whatsoever things were written before time were written for our learning that we through patience and comfort of the scriptures might have hope." You see, our hope comes from the word of God. Abraham had hope because of the promise of God that you would have a child in your old age and not a hope in himself. He looked at himself and said, "I can't have children." But his hope was not in himself. His hope was in God. Romans 4:19 again. And being not weak in faith, he considered not his own body, now dead when he was about 100 years old, neither yet the deadness of Sarah's womb.

See, again, he had that that hope, but the hope was in the word of God, not in himself. And and so sometimes we struggle with this idea of having hope. you know, well, you know, my husband, he's promised he's going to change. He promised he never do it again. And he did it again. He did it again. He did it again. And you get to a point where you stop believing that promise, right? And you stop believing that they're really going to change and that they're really sorry. You you get to that point, you you begin to doubt, you know, the change is going to happen and you you lose that that belief. And he says, when when you can no longer believe in that other person, that's when you have to hope.

and you're not hoping in them, who are you hoping in? God. Your hope is in the Lord, not in that person, not in that situation. You see, we we we understand that you can have faith without hope. And you can have hope without faith. Go over to Job chapter 6. Go to the book of Job chapter 6. Job chapter 6 and look at verses 11-14. Job chapter 6 and beginning verse number 11. It says, "What is my strength that I should hope? And what is mine end that I should prolong my life? Is my strength the strength of stones or is my flesh of brass? Is not my help in in me? And is is wisdom driven quite from me?"

Skip down in verse number 14. to him that is afflicted uh pity should be showed from his friend that he forsaken not the fear of the Almighty. And they go down to verse number 20. They were confounded because they had hoped. They came thither and were ashamed. You see Job is saying here am I am I made of stone? Am I made of of metal that I can continue to have hope in my situation? And so often we we struggle with that hope and having our hope in the Lord. What what happens when you have hope and you're disappointed? See, he said, "I had hope, but I was confounded. I was disappointed and and confused.

I didn't know what's what's happened here. What's going on?" And the idea of the word confused means to be ashamed. And so often we can have, you know, we have hope in a situation, but we're we're disappointed again and again and again or or we're ashamed because of what's going on. Zechariah 9:12 says this, "Turn you to the stronghold, you prisoners of hope. Even today do I declare that I will render double unto thee." You see, sometimes we're a prisoner of hope. We struggle with this idea of hope and and and we're a prisoner of that hope. In Philippians 1:es 19 and 20 says, "For I know that this shall turn to my salvation through your prayer and the supply of the spirit of Jesus Christ, according my earnest expectation and my hope, that in nothing I shall be ashamed, but that with all boldness, as always, so now also Christ shall be magnified my body, whether it be by life or by death."

You see, our hope is in the Lord. And we become prisoners of hope because we focus on that the situation has to change or the person has to change. But you see hope is this. When my hope is in the Lord, what I'm looking to the Lord is, Lord, you're either going to change this situation, you're going to change this person, or you're going to change me. In my marriage counseling, I'm often dealing with couples and and one of them is saying, "You know what? Uh, you know, he's done this over and over again, maybe committed adultery or been abusive uh in some way or whatever else it is." And and she says, "You know, I I tried and I tried and he keeps saying he's sorry.

He's going to change, but nothing changes. And and I've kind of given up hope." And what I have to point out is that you either hope that he's going to change or your hope is in the Lord that God's going to change you. See, God can either change your situation or God can change you. Sometimes when the couple comes and and they're they're going through a divorce and one of them doesn't want the divorce and and I say, "Listen, continue uh fighting for the marriage. Don't fight him. Don't fight her, but fight for the marriage." And and and and ask God to help you to save this marriage and make it work.

But here's the thing. If you get divorced, you need God. If you stay together, you need God. And your hope is not in that person staying with you, but your hope is in the Lord. God's either going to change your situation or change you. And we're when we're a prisoner of hope, but because we got to the point is my situation has to change. And we don't look to the Lord and say, God, I trust in you in this situation. And finding our hope in God. See, hope is is decided. In Psalms 71:14, he says, "But I will hope continually and yet praise thee more and more. No matter how long I have to hope, I'm still going to praise God.

I'm still going to trust in him." You see, you got to decide to hope in God. Go to the book of Lamentations in the Old Testament. Okay? Lamentations is right before uh right after Ezekiel and then Jeremiah and right I'm sorry Isaiah and Jeremiah and then right before Ezekiel and Daniel uh the book of Lamentations chapter 3. Lamentations chapter 3. Now you may have never read Lamentations before unless you've maybe read through the Bible. A lot of people never really read this book. Uh but in Lamentations chapter 3 and beginning with verse number 19. Lamentations chapter 3 and beginning verse number 19.

Even though you've not read it, the words are going to be familiar to you. Listen to it. Remembering my affliction and my misery, the wormwood and the gall, my soul hath them still in remembrance is humbled to me. Then I recall to my mind, therefore have I hope. He says all these things, the terrible things are happening. I I remember them, but then I remember my hope. Look at verse 22. It is of the Lord's mercy that we are not consumed because his compassions fail not. They are new every morning. Great is thy faithfulness. The Lord is my portion, saith my soul. Therefore, I will hope in him. The Lord is good unto me them that uh that uh wait for him to the to this I'm sorry, lights there.

There we go. to the soul that seeketh him. It is good that a man should both hope and quietly wait for me. Salvation of the Lord. Now, the reason some of those words are familiar is because they're part of a song that we often sing in Psalms 119 and uh and in verse and as I read that psalm the song, great is thy faithfulness, oh God, my father. There's no shadow of turning with thee. Thou changest not. Thy compassion failed not. As thou hast hope uh has been there, there thou forever will be. Great is thy faithfulness. Great is thy faithfulness. Morning by morning, new mercies I see. All I have needed, thy handath provided.

Great is thy faithfulness unto me. You see, hope is this. Hope is not hoping in the other person to change. is not hoping in your situation to change, but it's hoping in the Lord that God will be with me, that he will never leave me nor forsake me, that he will always be there for me. And and the the writer Lamentations said, "Listen, I I I focused on what was wrong and that got me nowhere, but then I turned my focus onto the Lord and his faithfulness, and that's when I found hope." So, you're not going to find hope in the other person because you've already believed the best in them and they didn't change.

You've already believed that next time it was going to be different and it wasn't because then we need to change our focus into the hope is in the Lord and trusting in him. See, I need to start with the hope of salvation. In 1 Corinthians 15:19, it says, "If in this life only we have hope in Christ, we are of all men most miserable." I'm thankful that I have hope in eternal life, that I have hope in my salvation. Do you have hope in your salvation? Go over to the book of Titus, chapter 3. Titus chapter 3 and look at verses 5-7. Titus chapter 3 and verses 5-7. The Bible says, "Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy has saved us by washing of regeneration, renewing of the Holy Ghost, which he shed on the on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our savior, that being justified by his grace, we should be made hes according to the hope of eternal life."

Do you have the hope of eternal life? Do you have that hope that to know that you're going to heaven? It's not a a hope that well I think it's going to happen but it's a hope that we know is going to happen. In 1 John 5 and 12 and 13 it says he that hath the son hath life. He that hath not the son of God hath not life. These things have I written unto you that believe on the name of the son of God that you may know that you have eternal life and that you may believe on the name of the son of God. You see, God wants us to know for sure that we're going to heaven. To have a hope of eternal life that is not I think I'm going to heaven, but that I know that I'm going to heaven.

I know that my sins are forgiven. In Titus 1 and verse number two, it says in hope of eternal life, which God that cannot lie promised before the world began. You see, we have God's promise of eternal life. It it's not a hope that's based upon well this may happen but this is a hope based upon that this will happen that when you trust Jesus Christ as your savior when you trust him instead of your own righteousness instead of your religion and your rituals and and and and trusting him as your savior and you need to put your trust in Christ to have that hope of eternal life. In Romans chap 10 and:es 9 and 10 it says that if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus and shall believe in thine heart that God has raised the dead thou shalt be s saved.

For with the heart man believeth under righteousness and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation. In verse number 13 it says for whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved. You see that's God's promise. He didn't say you might be saved. He said, "You will be saved if you trust in him and not in your own righteousness. If you trust in his death, burial, resurrection, and you trust in his love for you. If you put your faith and trust in him, God says you can have that hope of eternal life that is not I think I'm going to heaven, but that I know that I'm going to heaven."

Do you have that hope today? Because when you have the hope of eternal life, it gives you hope in so many other areas. It gives you hope in your relationship, in your marriage. It gives you hope in your relationship with others. It gives you hope in whatever situation you're going through because you know that you have that hope of eternal life. Go over to the book of Psalms chapter 39. Psalms chapter 39 and look at verse number 7. Psalms chapter 39 and look at verse number seven. It says in the Bible, "And now, Lord, what weight I for? My hope is in thee." Go to Psalms chapter 130 and look at verse number five.

Psalms chapter 130 and verse number five. The Bible says, "I wait for the Lord. My soul doth wait, and in his word do I hope." And then go to Psalms chapter 62. Psalms chapter 62. One of the hardest things to do is to wait on the Lord and to have your hope in him. Psalms chapter 62 and look at verses 5 and 6. The Bible says in Psalm 62:5, "My soul, wait thou only upon God, for my expectation is from him. He alone is my rock and my salvation. He is my defense. I shall not be moved." See, we have to hope is waiting. Somebody once said this, "God, give me patience and give it to me now." See, when you have hope, that means it's not fulfilled yet.

When you have hope, it means you're still waiting for what God is going to do. And and again, our hope is in the Lord, not in our situation. Because we're dealing with humans. We're dealing with people made of flesh. We're dealing with people that have a free will to make decisions. Now, I'll tell you this. If anybody's going to change him, it's going to be God and not you. You got to learn to say if the Lord can't change that situation, if the Lord can't change that person person, if they if he won't allow God to do it, he's not going to allow me to do it. But it's learning to wait on the Lord to say, God, I need you to either change my situation or I need you to change me and give me hope.

So we have to decide to hope in the other person. In Romans 5:20 it says, "Moreover, the law entered that the offense might abound. But where sin abounded, grace did much more abound." You see, grace has to abound in that situation. Hope is saying, "I hope this time is different because of the grace of God." People will fail you. In Proverbs 25:19, it says, "Confidence in an unfaithful man in time of trouble is like a broken tooth and a foot out of joint." You when you trust in somebody to change and they don't, it's painful. It hurts. You know, one thing about being a pessimist is this is pessimists are never disappointed because when you're a pessimist, you expect everything to go wrong.

When it goes wrong, you're not disappointed because you're expecting that. And if things go right, you're not disappointed by that either. But when you're an optimist, you get a lot of disappointment, don't you? When you're hoping for the best and it doesn't turn out, you're disappointed in that. And sometimes people fail us. I've hoped in other people. And I've had people that hoped in me and the things didn't change and we fail. And that's what happens with men. But we have to look to the Lord and say, "God, you can change this situation." In 1 Peter chapter 3 and verse number 8, it says, "Finally, be all of one mind, having compassion one another, love as brethren, be pitiful, be courteous."

You see, hope is this. I I love this quote. It says this, "To love a person is to see them not as they are, but as God intended for them to be, and to help them become that person by loving them the way that God does. Now think about that. To love a person is not to see them see them not as they are but as God intended for them to be and to help them become that person by loving them the way that God does. You know why hope fails for a lot of us? Because we keep doing the same things over and over again expecting different results. And that's the definition of insanity. The Bible says in 1 Peter 1:13, "Wherefore, gird up the loins of your mind.

Be sober and hope to the end for the grace that has been brought unto you at the revelation of Jesus Christ." You see, hope is realizing that if I want different results, I've got to do something different. And so, when I have hope that this person going to change, then maybe what I've been doing is the wrong thing. and maybe now I need to try something different to help them to change, to help them become what God wants them to be. We need to ask God for wisdom in that trial and that tribulation because it's not only opportunity for that person to change, but it's also opportunity for me to change.

And we need to find that hope and change in the Lord. Proverbs 13:12 says, "Hope deferred maketh the heart sick. But when the desire cometh, it is a tree of life." The word deferred there, the hope deferred is two different definitions of that word. One is to put off. To put off, you know, sometimes you get sick and tired of being sick and tired, don't you? If you're sick, I was talking to brother Coulson, our missionary in Chuke, and he was in Chuke after a hurricane. they were cleaning up and a tree fell on him and he's got a broken arms, broken ribs, and all kinds of other problems there. And uh you know, he's got to he's got to wait for it to get better.

And I'm I'm sure you're sick and tired of being sick and tired, but he's got hope that he's going to get better. And we want to find that hope in looking to the Lord. In Psalms 43 and verse number five, it says, "Why art thou cast out, oh my soul, and why are this quieted within me? hope in God for I shall yet praise him who is the health of my countenance and my God. The the the root word of the word hope there is a word which means cheerful. Uh the word hope and the word patience is be cheerful. You know don't be an Eeyore in hope. You know I hope my situation will change. I hope my husband will be different.

I hope we're we're Eors. Get a get looking to the Lord and get excited about what God's going to do in this situation. How God's either going to change that person or God is going to change you, but God is going to do something great. And hope is looking to Lord with cheerfulness. This is an opportunity when you're facing a situation that just is trying on you. You need to see that as an opportunity to grow your faith in the Lord, to grow your relationship with God, and even to grow in that relationship with that person as well. Don't put off getting right with God. You see, hope is planting a tree today knowing you won't eat his fruit till tomorrow.

You know why hope fails for a lot of us? Because we want it right now. I want to put that seed in the ground and go and pick fruit off the tree tomorrow. And that's not going to happen. See, hope is realizing that for this situation to change, I've got to start planting some seeds that may take weeks and months and even years to harvest. That the change isn't going to happen overnight. And what we do is we say, "Well, I want it to change and I want it right now." And then we give up hope because it doesn't. But the hope is planting that seed and watching God grow that seed. In James chapter 5 7 and 8 it says be patient therefore brethren onto the coming of the Lord.

Behold the husbandman or the farmer waited for the precious fruit of the earth and had long patience for it until receive the early and latter rain. Be also patient. Establish your hearts for the coming of the Lord drawth nigh. I want you to turn your Old Testament to the book of Habach. I'm going to give you a little bit of time to find that because it's one of the minor prophets there. Hosea, Joel, Amos, Oadiah, Jonah, Micah, Nahm, and then Habach in the Old Testament there. So, if you can turn over there for me, Habach chapter 3 is where I want you to turn to. But here's the thing, folks. A farmer plants a seed.

Now, the first thing he's got to get the seed in the ground before the rains come. And then he's got to get out there and cultivate it and weed it and and fertilize it, waiting for the results. But he's not just sitting. It's not waiting like you wait in a doctor's office waiting to go see the doctor, but it's an active ministry. It's an active process. And as you're saying, I want to see this situation change. I begin cultivating and working on and planting seeds to see that change happen in that situation. But listen what he says in Habach chapter 3 and verses 17-19. Habac chapter 3 beginning verse 17.

All the fig tree shall not blossom and shall fruit be in the vines. The labor of the olives shall fail and the field shall yield no meat. The flock shall be cut off from the fold and there shall be no herd in the stalls. Yet I'll rejoice in the Lord. I will joy in the God of my salvation. The Lord God is my strength and he will make my feet like hines feet and he will make me to walk upon the high places in the chief to the chief singer on my stringed instruments. See what's Habac saying? I have people come, well pastor, I've I've believed the best in him and I've hoped it would change and nothing's changed and I give up.

But back says even if I don't see any fruit, God is still God and God is still good and God is still in control of the situation and I need to trust in God. So don't give up your hope because your hope is not in that other person. Your hope is not in the situation changing but your hope is in God and trusting in him. Romans 15:13 says, "Now the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace, believing that you may abound in hope through the power of the Holy Ghost." The idea there is saying, listen with all joy and peace is anticipate with pleasure. Anticipate with excitement. What is God going to do in this situation?

My hope is not in that other person to change. My hope is in God to either change my situation or to change me. Either way, I have hope. I want to close with 2 Corinthians chapter 12. 2 Corinthians chapter 12. 2 Corinthians chapter 12. What do you do when nothing changes? What do you do when it seems like hope is gone? In 2 Corinthians chapter 12 and verses 7-10 says, "Unless I should be exalted above measure through the abundance of the revelations, there was given to me a thorn in the flesh, the messenger of Satan to buffet me, lest I should be exalted above measure. For this thing I besought the Lord thrice that it might depart from me.

And he said that my grace is sufficient for thee. For my strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly, therefore, will I rather glory in my infirmities that the power of Christ may rest upon me. Therefore, I take pleasure in infirmities and reproaches and necessities and persecutions in distress for Christ's sake. For when I am weak, then am I strong. Sometimes hope is denied. Sometimes the situation doesn't change. You know, in the Bible, not everyone was healed. There was some great miracles of healing in the Bible, but not everyone was healed. Paul's one example of that. In the Bible, not everybody got out of prison.

John the Baptist ended up being beheaded. Paul ended up being in prison and being put to death. In the Bible, not every marriage was restored. Hosea had a wife who was acting as a prostitute. And as far as we know, nothing ever changed. No matter how much she tried to reach out and minister to her and love her, she continued down that same path. Sometimes hope is denied. But Paul said, "Listen, when hope is denied, his grace is sufficient because God will either change your situation or God will change you." And either way, there's hope. Hope in the Lord. Love beareth all things. You got to put up with things in any relationship.

Love believeth all things. To believe the best in the other person, not the worst. To give them the benefit of doubt. To believe they really didn't mean to hurt you and to do what they did. To believe they're they truly want to change and do better. But sometimes we have to have hope because things aren't changing and they're not getting better. And hope is not something that's passive and just sits around and waits for something to happen. But hope is active. What can I do to prepare? You know, tomorrow I have faith that the sun is going to come up, but I have hope that it's not going to rain.

But you know what? I looked at the weather last night on the news and the weatherman said it's not going to rain on Monday. That's good news. But the weatherman has failed me before. I don't know about you. He's failed me before. So, you know what we're doing? We're getting ready in case. We're going to put up some canopies. We got the house all cleaned. And if it ends up not being a picnic, it's going to be an open house. We still want you to come over. We bought the hot dogs and the hamburgers by faith. We hope it doesn't rain tomorrow, but we're going to continue on whether it rains or not. And that's what you have to understand about