You Can’t Steal My Hope

If I had no hope, I would be most miserable for sure. The truth is, even with hope, life strikes some heavy blows, doing its best to steal our hope.

I remember one such time.

After the evening service at church camp when in high school, Julie and I decided to get some fresh air. We sat on the back steps for some girl talk.

Gazing upward as we plopped down, Julie spoke first. “Look. You can see the Milky Way tonight,” 

Raising my head, my eyes scanned from left to right.

I saw nothing.

Should I confess this realization or pretend to go along?

After hesitating, I gulped and went for it. “I can’t see it. It must be cloudy.”

“No. It’s a beautiful midnight sky. Are you okay?” she asked.

She must have noticed how my face paled. It was probably as white as the bright moon – the only thing in the sky visible to me.

Horrified, fear replaced hope of a normal life. Deep down, I knew something terrible was wrong with my eyes. 

I already knew from visiting a retina specialist the year before that my retina was quite abnormal. A cyst rested on it, which usually doesn’t happen to people younger than forty. 

The cause was unknown.

I had been told it might go away on its own in a few months. Sure didn’t appear so this night.

My mind came back to the present. I searched the sky again to see if I could find the brightest North Star.

Didn’t happen.

Oh, Julie tried. She pointed. She even used my arm and had me follow the tips of my fingers. We must have tried for at least five minutes solid.

Seeing the North Star hadn’t been a problem in the past, yet now no amount of eye strain, focusing, or directions allowed me to see God’s creation.

Even my imagination couldn’t fill in the gaps.

You Can’t Steal my Hope

Tears flowed that night, but after my hope drained of a normal future, like a bunch of dish water after doing dishes, a good night’s rest gave new life in the morning.

Through the night, I remembered the devil was out to steal my joy. He wanted to steal my hope. But God was bigger.

Fight came back.

* I had no idea how quick I would lose more sight.

*I had no idea if I could go to college.

*I had no idea if anyone would marry me.

Why, I didn’t even know if I could live on my own.

I later discovered I suffered from an incurable, progressive eye disease called Retinitis Pigmentosa. But, I had a relationship with Jesus Christ who gave me His Word, the Bible.

His promise of not ever leaving me held true.

With Him, I was able to:

*get a teaching degree while losing sight, and teach elementary special education for three years

*live on my own independently for many years

*marry and become a pastor’s wife before getting ordained myself

Over time, I was able to change my focus from despair to hope. God has allowed many of my dreams to come true.

God Gives Hope

Situations hit all of us every day that try to steal our hope.

Most of the time, it comes in the form of devastating news like:

news of a birth defect to a pregnant mother

*news of a fatal crash of a loved one

*news delivered of no more work

*news of a cancer diagnosis

All steal hope, leaving an uncertain future. Their plans and dreams have been temporarily derailed making life seem unbearable at the moment.

I believe everyone has experienced this with the news of Covid. We might not be able to prevent our hope being stolen, but it can be temporary instead of permanent.

Let God do what He did for me. He has guided my every step and led me through the fire and given me miracles as blessings, used me, and given me peace through every storm. He has been my best friend through the good and the bad.

God not only prevented my hope from being stolen, but gave me the hope of eternal life and blessed me with hope on earth turned into reality.

Hope for a bright future is possible for you too. no matter what comes your way. Jesus is there to guide and comfort during your time of need. He won’t leave or forsake you either.

No one can steal your hope!

What gives you hope? Tell us in the comments below.

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© 2023, Jena Fellers. All rights reserved.