How Hope is Actually Lost

We often think hope is lost in the fire. We think it disappears in the explosion of a scandal, a sudden tragedy, or a massive, loud crisis.

Actually, hope is usually lost in the ashes.

It is lost in the silence of the "slow bleed."

It isn't the one bad day that breaks you, it is the months of mini defeats that never seem to turn a corner. It isn't the major theological battle, it is the accumulation of small, petty conflicts that erode your joy bit by bit. It is that nagging, terrifying thought in the back of your mind that you are no longer leading a charge, but simply "managing a funeral."

J.R.R. Tolkien, a man who knew something about darkness, coined the phrase "the long defeat." He used it to describe fighting a battle that you know, historically or statistically, you might not win but fighting it anyway because it is right. Fighting it because there is something worth preserving.

It is easy to feel that ministry has become one long defeat. But Scripture reminds us that what feels like a defeat to the eyes is often preparation to the soul.

As Paul wrote to the Corinthians, who were surrounded by a culture that was slowly bleeding them dry:

"Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all." (2 Corinthians 4:16-17, NIV)

The "wasting away" is the slow bleed. It’s real. It’s heavy. But it is not the whole story.

Hope for the Broken Soul reminds us of this truth. This truth is this, Your current exhaustion is not a prophecy of your future.

If you are tired today, you aren't alone. The slow bleed is painful, but the story isn't over. We serve a God who specializes in dry bones and empty tombs.

Broken souls can be healed. Dead things can rise. And the bleed can stop.

Hang on.

Get your copy of Hope for the Broken Soul HERE!