Hope Inspires New Beginnings
Text: Job 14:1-9
Key Verse: “For a tree, there is hope that if cut down, it will sprout again, that its shoots will continue to grow.- Job 14:7 JCB
The Book of Job is one story that inspires hope of a new beginning. Man’s life is full of troubles; some start from their youth. Others experience the good things in life and move from one happy ending to another until one unexpected event occurs. Believers and nonbelievers in Jesus Christ experience these interruptions and must have the right attitudes and wisdom to believe and expect favourable outcomes.
Hope is a feeling of expectation and desire for something to happen. No matter what has happened, it would help if you nurtured the hope that good can still come out of life’s unexpected events.
Who can bring what is pure from something impure? No one! “- Job 14:4
This way of thinking is familiar to humans, it is an idea based on human experience and limitations, but God is not limited in possibilities.
As a door closes, God can open new ones because he holds the Keys of David; where there are no raw materials for production, God can manufacture just what is needed. There are several testimonies of women who had undergone medical procedures to remove their wombs, eventually conceiving and giving birth. That is a medical miracle, and God still performs miracles.
Our key verse points to the possibility of new beginnings in the life of a tree with the application of water. It is not the responsibility of the tree to get the water for itself. Water represents life, and the source of water is God. As long as the stump focuses on its history, it will not see possibilities, but when attention turns to the God who makes history, hope rises.
Then she set out with her daughters-in-law to return from the country of Moab, for she had heard in Moab how the Lord had taken care of His people [of Judah] in giving them food. – Ruth 1:6 AMP
Naomi heard a good word that the Lord had given his people food, which gave her the expectation of a favourable outcome in the future. What you hear after an unexpected event can discourage you or build hope in your heart. Surround yourself with people who see and hear good things.
Negative-minded people full of fear live in the past, but those who have their eyes on God tend to be more hopeful because of their beliefs.
There are so many possibilities as long as there is life, but once hope is gone, new opportunities seem like a dead end.
But Naomi said, “Go back, my daughters; why should you go with me? Do I still have sons in my womb that may become your husbands? Go back, my daughters, go, for I am too old to have a husband. If I said I have hope, and if I actually had a husband tonight and even gave birth to sons, would you wait until they were grown? Would you go without marrying? No, my daughters; for it is much more difficult for me than for you, because the Lord’s hand has gone against me.” – Ruth 1:11-13
During Job’s multiple crises, his wife and partner could not picture any future for him, and she counselled him to end what was left of his miserable life. But Job did not forget his belief in God, who could give him a fresh start.
“If a man dies, will he live again? I will wait all the days of my struggle Until my change and release will come. – Job 14:14
Build your hope on God’s character, ability and the testimonies of those overcoming life’s hurdles. It will take a process for things to become the happy ending you desire, so wait for it.
Water represents the Word of God, and the promises of Scripture are reliable, build your hope on them and watch God birth new things in your life. For some, it might be restoring old relationships, jobs, businesses or ministries. While for others, it may be the beginning of new things. Wait for God, believe the best, and dream again. God is so powerful that what He cannot do does not exist; He is so loving and has given his best already, Jesus Christ, for you. He can not provide you with anything as proof of his love. Trust in the Lord.
“For as the rain and snow come down from heaven, And do not return there without watering the earth, Making it bear and sprout, And providing seed to the sower and bread to the eater, So will My word be which goes out of My mouth; It will not return to Me void (useless, without result), Without accomplishing what I desire, And without succeeding in the matter for which I sent it. – Isaiah 55:10-11
Prayer
Father, l thank you for your word that gives me hope daily; though my circumstances have been the same, l still have hope in your faithfulness and ability. Help me nurture this hope budding in my heart, help me water it daily with your word until my change comes. Keep me away from negative-minded people who live in the past and lack new dreams, and help me speak what l hope for in my daily confessions until you visit my life with testimonies. This is my prayer in Jesus’ name. Amen.
Pastor Ada