Hope Is Possible
Hope Is Possible
Ever felt like you were up against a wall? Stuck. Stalled. Stymied. Smack-dab against a cold, hard, and unyielding barrier with absolutely no way out. You can’t go back; you can’t go sideways; it’s too high to climb; it’s impossible to tunnel underneath; and there are no detours. You are absolutely devoid of hope. What do you do?
© Jose AS Reyes
A friend once told me, “Joni, when you’re up against a wall, the only thing you can do is start walking through it.” Sound impossible? Whoever heard of anyone walking through a wall?
Well, someone did. The scene is described in John 20:26. In the Upper Room, Jesus suddenly appeared in the midst of his frightened, discouraged disciples. The door was closed, the walls were thick, and there was no entry or exit. But Jesus did the impossible. He entered the room, and with him came hope.
Jesus is constantly asking us to do the impossible. When we face the wall—whether it is pain, an emotionally unbearable circumstance, or a difficult situation beyond anything we’ve ever encountered before—God wants us to place our hope in him, because with him, all things are possible (see Mark 10:27). It is possible to smile in the face of disappointment; it is possible to trust God in the middle of an injury or illness and to face the day with a bright outlook even though it seems your world is falling apart. The world would say it’s impossible, but with God you can always have hope.
What is your wall today? What is the impossible situation that has stopped you in your tracks and is turning you back? Ask the Lord Jesus to meet you there—right where you are. And then walk hand-in-hand with him through that wall to the other side. You’ll discover just how wonderful biblical hope is when Jesus leads you through the impossible and into hope.