{that thing called hope}

I've always been a fairly optimistic person. 

I try to see the good in others and in all situations. Emphasis on try. ;)

I believe that God has a plan for my life and every day I do my best to stay on the track that He wants me to be on. 

I don't know if it is a by-product of how my parents raised me, or just my DNA, but I tend to have a lot of hope about life in general. Even when things look bleak and aren't working out the way I want them to, I have hope that the right thing will come along when I most need it. When my family most needs it. When my friends most need it. 

Sometimes I think about hope, and feel silly or naive about the whole concept. 

Do good things, and good will come back to you. Does that always happen?

Well, honestly, not always. Sometimes we do our best and we still get crap dumped on us. That's life. But I think we have to see the beauty amongst the crap. OK...that's a horrible illustration. 

How about we have to see the shining light in the darkness...even if it is just a small flicker in what seems like an enormous black hole. 

It IS there. 

Sometimes we just have to work REALLY hard to find it. And I think all of that extra work is God's way of refining us...getting us ready for what's to come...making us a better version of ourselves.

If anything so far in my life has taught me that, it has been my journey so far as a mother. I didn't even realize how much refining I needed until those two boys came into the world. You would think there would be nothing left of me after all of the shaping, chiseling and polishing God has done to little old me. And I do have to admit that I lost hope for a few weeks right after they were born. But I'm SO thankful it came back.  

To quote one of my favorite movies...

"Hope is a good thing. Maybe the best of good things. 

And no good thing ever dies."

-The Shawshank Redemption

Two things happened over the past few weeks that got me thinking a lot about hope, and the blind faith I tend to carry in my heart. One was hope for a better financial situation for our family. An opportunity came up that ended up not working out, and to be honest, I did get frustrated. I cried a bit. But then I thought about it a bit more and was reminded that we are doing OK. Yes, the money would have been very helpful. But we're doing OK. The right think WILL come along. 

"Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer."

-Romans 12:12

I also took quite a big step a few weeks ago to heal a personal relationship. It was quite a scary leap...taken after much prayer and difficult contemplation and talks with God. Much to my surprise some baby steps have been taken toward healing, and for that I'm grateful. I believe I was rewarded for that crazy, scary leap I took. 

And I have hope. 

"For in this hope we are saved. Now hope that is seen is not hope. 

For who hopes for what he sees? But if we hope for what we do not see, 

we wait for it with patience."

-Romans 8:24-25

If you can stand one more quote about hope, I have a free printable to share with you today. I love this quote from Emily Dickinson, and I am obsessed with feathers, so it makes me happy...and I hope you will find it an encouraging reminder...

*Click on the image to download*

So tell me, what gives you hope friends? What do you lean on when things get tough. Le's encourage each other!

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