IS THERE HOPE FOR TOMORROW?
- Key Verse
- "He is wooing you from the jaws of distress to a spacious place free from restriction, to the comfort of your table laden with choice food. But now you are laden with the judgment due the wicked; judgment and justice have taken hold of you." (Job 36:16-17)
READ THE CHAPTER
Central Truth
God is wooing us and wants us to be free and without worry, but we are burdened with the troubles and hardships that life throws at each of us.
Reflections
I've been told my whole life that everything happens for a reason and I should put my trust in God for all things. But there are times when I hope that God will do something, or that my dreams will come true, or that there is a reason for a difficult circumstance. What does hope have to do with wooing and jaws of distress? Verse 16 of this passage says that God "is wooing me from the jaws of distress." When I am in the middle of a tough situation, I am most certainly not thinking about God wooing me. How can God be wooing me when all these bad things happen in my life? But when I put my trust in Him, I realize that God is wooing me. He is faithful and brings me out of hurtful situations. I've come to understand that I'm not exactly trusting God in my moments of distress, I'm just hoping. Job didn't just hope; he trusted that God would provide each day. Job trusted that the God of the entire universe would take care of him.
Is there hope for tomorrow? If I change the wording of that question to "will I trust God with tomorrow?" or "do I believe God has a reason for this mess today?" the two words, trust and believe, capture what hope is. The dictionary says one definition of hope is to "trust or to believe." But I think that I often apply another definition of hope that means "to feel something desired may happen." When I hope, am I leaving it up to chance, or do I really believe and trust God will do something about my situation?
Do I believe that God is wooing me from the jaws of distress? In my life, I think the answer is still up for debate at times. Do I believe that God wants good things for me? Of course! But am I just hoping that my desired outcome will happen or really believing that God has a reason for everything?
Discussion Questions
1. What does hope mean to you? To "trust or to believe" OR to "feel something desired may happen?" Why? Is that something you need to change?
2. Do you hope and then leave it to chance, or do you trust God will help?
3. Think of three instances where you hoped for something. Did what you'd hoped for happen or not?
4. How often do you hope for something instead of believing and trusting God will provide for you?
Mark Sutton
April 19, 2010 07:24 AM
Noelle, Thanks for the devotion. For me hope is the expectation a desired outcome. The struggle is that for my hope to be realized and for me to remain at peace while I am waiting for my hope to be realized, I must be abiding in God's will.
Tim Hawks
April 19, 2010 07:58 AM
Noel, thanks for your insightful comments. It helps me to process the distinction between "hope for something I want" and "hope that God is at work and His plan is best".
David Skeen
April 19, 2010 08:24 AM
Job 36:15 in ESV: "He delivers the afflicted by their affliction and opens their ear by adversity." God is gracious in giving us affliction and adversity, so we will depend on and listen to him. Thanks for the thought-provoking devotional.
Betsy Doolittle
April 19, 2010 08:37 AM
Noelle- Thanks! When I read this chapter I confess I kept having to check back to see who was speaking. You made me think about what kind of hope I have. I agree that the hope that Job had was a trust in God--which makes so much sense--rather than just a want or an individual plan. For me, when I can trust God with Job's kind of hope, it brings peace during the waiting time too.
Kim Mozejko
April 19, 2010 09:31 AM
Noel, outstanding insight on hope. Your message really spoke to where i am at today. It is uncanny how God's timing is perfect. That this was exactly what I needed to hear right now, today, strengthen's my hope and faith. Thank you for letting God work through you to reach me. I'm gonna have a great day! :^)
Jo Newell
April 19, 2010 09:36 AM
What great and challenging insights into this verse. Thank you so much for sharing with us today!
Kevin Britton
April 19, 2010 09:39 AM
Great reminder Noelle! I agree that I too often shift my attention to chance or circumstance and that can become my focus. The actions that are produced by hope, faith, and love speak volumes of God's place of prominance in life. When He "woos" me in those desperate times, this passage reminds me to respond. Very powerful!
Ronda Kane
April 19, 2010 11:32 AM
Noelle, your thoughts on this passage dovetailed perfectly with lessons in my life of late. In times of trouble, my hope in anything besides God is futile -- oftentimes deceptively pleasant, but nonetheless futile. Psalm 42:5 says, "Why are you downcast, O my soul? Why so disturbed within me? Put your hope in God, for I will yet praise him, my Savior and my God." Now when my soul is downcast, I am reminded to examine where I am placing my hope.
Marilyn Dixon
April 19, 2010 11:49 AM
I don't recall ever having noticed this verse before: "He is wooing you from the jaws of distress" Thanks Noelle for reminding us that God is wooing us from troubles and that we can trust Him in and through the difficult times, not just hope for a better day. We must follow that wooing and trust in Him that He has a "spacious place free from restriction" for us and not be laden with worry about our troubles.
Linda Jean Butler
April 19, 2010 03:05 PM
Today has been especially stressful and I needed to hear this word today. Thanks for reminding me to trust God with this situation and not just hope for the best.
Joy Covell
April 19, 2010 05:20 PM
I too have not noticed verse 16 before today, but I have written it on my "To Do List" so I will read it over and over! God wants to bring us out into a place of abundance...that's more than we can ever hope for!