Picture by Gerd Altmann from Pixabay
“Which hope we have as an anchor of the soul, both sure and steadfast” (Hebrews 6:19).
HOPE
Faith has a sister named Hope. Faith is essential to help us transfer our sin burden to Jesus, our Savior.
I reside in the land of hope, confident I will be with Jesus in heaven after I die. I love God because He gives me help NOW while I’m living on earth. This earth-living part of my life is where Hope is needed most. The help He gives me today gives me hope for tomorrow.
Hope and Faith Lived Out
I married my husband David Logsdon in 1988. In 1994, his mother Ruth suffered a severe stroke. Thus began some difficult years.
We left our home and moved fifteen miles to live with Ruth, and help her after she returned home from the hospital. David’s two brothers flew in from out of state immediately to give the three of us their temporary but greatly appreciated support. Our church family prayed and brought us meals, which also helped immensely.
More Difficult Days
After several months of David and me living with Ruth, a problem arose when it rained. Her house developed a leak. The pressed board floor got wet. The formaldehyde composition started making us sick. Unable to fix the problem, David, his mom and I abandoned her house and the three of us moved in with my parents across town.
My dad had been having mild strokes for years. One home healthcare nurse who came to the house to help my dad asked us, “Is this a nursing home?” Her comment helped us realize we were under too heavy a load.
Sustained by Faith
I scouted around and was able to find a nursing home to house Ruth temporarily until another arrangement surfaced. Graciously, one of David’s brothers (and his wife) took her into their home in another state.
A few months later we found a Medicaid bed for my dad. After occupying that bed for eight months, dad died. Every time Princess Diana’s death comes up, I know instantly when she died because dad died August 29, 1997. The day after Princess Di died. Ruth also died that same year around Thanksgiving. It helped to know my dad and Ruth both went to heaven.
Hope Joins Faith
Hope was our bedfellow during those years. For David and me hope was embedded in three verses of Scripture. “For which cause we faint not; but though our outward man perish, yet the inward man is renewed day by day. For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory; while we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen: for the things which are seen are temporal; but the things which are not seen are eternal” (II Corinthians 4:16-18).
God is There For You Too
These verses spoke hope into us, giving us an anchor deep in our soul. I don’t know what you’re going through these days of your life. Please know whatever it is, God is up to the challenge.
Shirley Logsdon
Additional Reading:by Freda Reynolds
