Hope. My dog has hope. It almost seems like eternal hope. No matter what I say to him he still has hope. Hope of a scrap from the table or a stroke on his ears. He will jump up on the chair and lay down just to get warm or to give warmth. Hope. I heard another mention of hope yesterday. The reference came from Zech 9:12 Return to your fortress, O prisoners of hope ; even now I announce that I will restore twice as much to you. Are you a prisoner of hope? The idea has just penetrated my thinking the last couple of days. God tells us to return to your fortress. We are prisioners of hope. To believe in God is to allow ourselves to be prisoners but prisoners of a benevolent captor. God has captured us with his Word and his promises. This promise is to restore to us twice what we have lost for his sake. It is not a reference to material blessings in this world although it could be. That is up to Him. The promise of childhood is one I love too. To be a child of God. Adopted into his family and heirs with Christ. That is a promise he makes to us. To live FOREVER as a prisoner of God. That is what I strive for. He promises to come for us and take us to be where he is and I can hardly wait. Until that comes though I will choose to be his captive. To trust him no matter what.
In His hands.
Jerry