Another year is gone. Another one is beginning. 2017 was a very difficult year for me. I had major surgery. We had lots of family things happen. We got behind. We lost hope for a time.
A little bit of background: I have chronic pain. I have lived with this for five years. It has been a very hard uphill battle. I have seen dozens of doctors and spent many thousands of dollars. When I had surgery back in April it was a last ditch effort to fix something to help me heal. It was a very hard and major surgery. I got through it with the help of lots of family and friends. But, the surgery didn’t work. I do have more good days than bad but I am not completely healed…yet.
That’s where my word for 2018 comes into play. Hope. I lost hope for a little while. It’s hard to go through hard times and keep seeing the good. Especially, if you are in pain. But, hope is what believing in God gives us. Hope is the miracle of Jesus. Hope is knowing that no matter what happens, God is with you and loves you. That’s what I am doing in 2018.
Hope can be something that you have in any part of your life. If your homeschooling year didn’t go as planned, you can have hope that it’s a new year and it will get better. If your finances have taken a blow (definitely been there), you can have hope that God will provide for all your needs.
2017 was probably one of the hardest years I have ever had. The struggles and failures and pain and disappointment all added up to me feeling hopeless. I started to sink into a pit and I knew I had to get out quick. I had stopped reading my Bible daily right after my surgery. That’s when I knew I had to get back at it. God restored that hope in my heart.
Even though I am still in pain and still have some disappointment over a failed surgery and other life events, I have hope that it won’t always be like this. Jesus gave us the hope of heaven one day. I am so grateful to have my hope back. Hopelessness is a lonely place to be. I pray that you find hope in your circumstances. No matter what is going on, God is with you and will never leave you.
