CAMENA

Standing Strong in God Through Challenging Circumstances 

Part 5 in a series – Finding Hope Through Community

A Word of Hope from Lisa Hall, TWR Women of Hope international prayer coordinator

“May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.” – Romans 15:13

Hope. It is as essential for our lives as oxygen and water. Without it we often give up on life or become numb or bitter. But with hope, we can be strengthened to take the next step or even to dare to dream.

Often we need the help of others in finding hope. Because the Trinity of Father, Son and Holy Spirit is a God of relationship, we are designed for authentic community. And it is through community that we help each other find and hold onto this hope from God.

Our lives are full of challenging circumstances: the diagnosis of cancer, death of a loved one, loss of a job, abandonment by a spouse, rejection by a prodigal child or onset of debilitating depression. I have personally either walked these dark paths or have helped close friends walk through them.

There are times in my life that my heart has ached so deeply that I could not stop crying. And when the tears finally did stop, my heart felt numb from grief. These are the times when God has brought dear friends to hold me and to eventually help me find my way back to hope. What about you? How have others helped you through your pain?

One of my favorite Bible passages describing this is the friendship of David and Jonathan. King Saul, Jonathan’s father, was jealous of David and spent years hunting David to kill him, only to have God provide David’s escape each time. The stress, isolation and fear of literally running for his life brought discouragement to David’s soul.

Then a brother in the faith stepped in to help David in his difficult situation. “And Saul’s son Jonathan went to David at Horesh and helped him find strength in God.” (1 Sam. 23:16) Just as Jonathan did for David, the best thing that we can do for our friends in their pain and difficulty is to take them to God in prayer and to help them find strength in the God who sees them and cares for them.

As a ministry, our vision at TWR Women of Hope is to Bring hope in Jesus to women around the world and across generations. Whether the woman is in a prayer group, a listener to our radio broadcasts and podcasts, or someone interacting with our teams through social media or on-the-ground partners, we are helping one woman at a time find her hope and strength in God.

As believers, each of us can bring this amazing message of hope in Jesus to the world! Find strength in your own situation by remembering, “Do not be afraid or discouraged, for the Lord will personally go ahead of you. He will be with you; he will neither fail you nor abandon you” (Deut. 31:8). And we can encourage others to “hold tightly without wavering to the hope we affirm, for God can be trusted to keep his promise. Let us think of ways to motivate one another to acts of love and good works” (Heb. 10:23-24).

Dear friend, realize that you are not alone in your difficulty. God is always with you and has also given you the body of Christ to encourage you and support you. Please reach out today to seek help for yourself or to bring this message of hope to a friend in need.