Time for Hope

Over the past year, we heard President Scogin speak often about hope. He loves that our college is named “Hope” and he encouraged us to embrace hope as we worked through the pandemic.

And, now, here we are again. It is time for Hope College and it is time for hope. The word “hope” carries different meanings for people. I can “hope you have a great day” or “hope the Lions actually make the playoffs.” This use of “hope” is really more of a wish that something happens. For those of us “hoping” that the Lions make the playoffs, we realize how far-reaching such hope can be at times.

However, as Christians, “hope” carries a far weightier meaning, which is what President Scogin usually has in mind. An article I read recently clarified the difference with the idea that the secular world hopes for something while the Christian hopes in something. When we hope for something we are looking for an outcome. When we hope in something, namely, God, we are not searching for an outcome but acknowledging that our hope in God means we know God is with us no matter what the outcome.

We are part of a world that likes to have answers. We think there is a solution to every problem and an explanation for every conundrum. None of us has to look far to see that we, humanity, fail miserably in providing answers and explanations. So we are left with the option to hope for something which may or may not occur, or to hope in that which is eternal, present, and loving. We may not understand why some things occur or how we are going to solve the next problem, but our hope in God assures us that no matter what the outcome, we are loved and supported.

As our students return and the masks go back on, we need to do more than just hope for a good year. We need to place our hope in God that we will be okay in the end, even when we don’t understand the “why” of what we see and experience.  “May your unfailing love be with us, LORD, even as we put our hope in you” says Psalm 33.

With the change in the mask mandate and the quick rise in COVID cases, we can become despairing and cynical. When we place our hope in humanity instead of God, we find that hope coming up empty. Humans fail us and we fail other humans. By focusing our hope in God first, we can better serve one another. Without this hope, we will falter, stumble, and fall. But “those who hope in the LORD will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint” (Isaiah 40: 31).

As we enter a new school year, let us challenge ourselves to enter a year where our hope in God is the basis for our interactions with others, for our tasks, and for our life outside of work. Let it be a year where we work hardest at living into the hope our faith provides so that we can more fully serve those around us.