In the Heart of Our Heavenly Father is the source for all hope. Symbolically the manna found in the Ark of the Covenant represented among other things, hope. Each day Our Heavenly Father provided manna to the children of Israel in the wilderness. The manna was only good for a day, or two if before a Sabbath. There was no hoarding of the manna. Initially, each person in the wilderness exercised hope and faith that our Heavenly Father would provide the next day. After so many days of success, it became familiar and commonplace for the manna to be on the ground. At that point, Our Heavenly Father became the provider of sustenance for the people which in essence provided them with “life”. Can you imagine a perfect food to keep you healthy? The people had been enslaved for generations by the Egyptians and needed the revelation of hope in their lives to become real to them. What better way than to start with a basic need- food. The next need was water. When the water was low, Our Heavenly Father had Moses strike the rock and water came gushing out for the people to drink. These acts were designed to provide hope for entrance into the Promised Land. However, of that generation who left Egypt, only two men could overcome the ego’s power over them. Joshua and Caleb converted that hope to faith and were able to enter the Promised Land after forty years.
Placing your hope in others can lead to sorrow and disappointment. When your hope is not based or originated in Our Heavenly Father, it is subject to the sin and judgments against the other person. Unfortunately more often than not, you will be disappointed in the result. The complexities of life work against you placing hope in another person. Sometimes there are just circumstances beyond their control to perform and in the end they will typically do what is necessary for them to survive even if it is an illusion in their mind. Fear can have a significant impact on people and that is why we are urged to “fear not” throughout Scripture. When fear has embraced you, others cannot count on you to perform and fulfill the hope placed in you. Misplaced hope can damage the maturing process of faith and cause you to become cynical towards all people. When that happens, judgment and division creep in and further separates you from Our Heavenly Father. We must keep in mind that HE created all mankind and we must find the lesson to be learned when we encounter disappointment in the hope we placed in others.
The first use of hope in Scripture is seen in the Book of Ruth. There was a famine in the land of Israel, so Ruth’s future husband’s family went to the land of Moab. Ruth married into the family. During a ten year period, the three men of the family died and left Ruth, her mother-in-law, and sister-in-law in desperation. They were broke, husbandless, and hungry so things were looking a little bleak. Even though Naomi, her mother-in-law, had urged her to go her separate way, Ruth committed to stay with Naomi are receive GOD as her god. They ended up returning to Bethlehem at the beginning of the barley harvest which incidentally refers to the “overcomers” in Scripture. This begins the beautiful love story based on hope and redemption. Ruth goes to a local field being harvested hoping to pick up any grain left by the harvesters. Boaz, the owner the field, sees Ruth and is attracted to her immediately. It turns out that Boaz is able to redeem Ruth and marry her. Ruth conceives a child who turns out to be the grandfather of King David.
This story reflects the bigger picture of Our Heavenly Father’s plan. Little did Ruth know that she would become the wife of Boaz. Back in Moab, her life looked like it was pretty well over. Once Ruth accepted Our Heavenly Father as her God, her hope was activated and the future began to unfold. Ruth was called to be King David’s great grandmother. Little did she know when she was enduring the famine back in Moab that her destiny would be so bright!
Let not the world events cause your hope to depart. FATHER is still in control:
Philippians 4:11 Not that I speak in regard to need, for I have learned in whatever state I am, to be content:
12 I know how to be abased, and I know how to abound. Everywhere and in all things I have learned both to be full and to be hungry, both to abound and to suffer need.
13 I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.