Free Hope for Your Heart: Finding Strength in Life's Storms by June Hunt Page A

us to step out in faith, taking God at His word. Our faith is motivated by our hope, and faith is the means by which we benefit from our hope. Placing our faith in Jesus is the means by which we take hold of our hope in Him and receive all the benefits of having Jesus, including living an anchored life and spending eternity with Him.
Our hope for eternal life is Jesus, because of His finished work on the cross for the forgiveness of our sins. But if we refuse to have hope
in
Him, we will spend eternity separated
from
Him.

    As you sojourn on the sea of life, Christ has set you on His course, first to save you and then to conform you into His image. Having the assurance of hope is necessary before you can act in faith. Then you act in faith because of your hope. Ultimately, the Bible says that your hope is the catalyst that produces your faith.
    . . . the faith and love that spring from the hope that is stored up for you in heaven and that you have already heard about in the word of truth, the gospel. (Col. 1:5)

HAVING NO HOPE AND FAITH CAN BE FATAL
    To illustrate from my own family, when my dad was in his sixties, he went to his doctor for a checkup. Tests revealed he had polyps in his colon. Knowing they could become cancerous, the doctor recommended surgery.
    My dad’s response? “No! All doctors want to do is cut on you.” Always skeptical of physicians, he chose not to listen to the specialist. But here’s the point: Because Dad didn’t have hope in the medical evaluation, he didn’t have faith to act upon it. Ultimately my father’s refusal to believe the diagnosis and to act on the doctor’s recommendation had deadly results: My dad later died of colon cancer— needlessly.
    On the other hand, since I did have hope in the accuracy of my cancer diagnosis, I acted in faith, followed the recommended treatment plan, and by the grace of God survived.

CLOCKING HURRICANE INTENSITY
    The storms of life greatly vary in intensity, like the hurricanes evaluated and ranked on the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Wind Scale. Category 1 hurricanes sustain winds from 74 to 95 miles per hour. At the other end of the scale are Category 5 hurricanes with winds measuring more than 155 miles per hour.
    A Category 1 hurricane could be likened to a friend letting you down, so you have to cancel a long-anticipated trip. Circumstances are swirling around you, but you’re not in danger of being blown over. A Category 5 hurricane would have to be associated with our greatest enemy, death, and could be likened to the loss of a child, spouse, or parent. Category 5 storms send us sprawling if we’re not anchored . . .
anchored in Christ
.
    My experience with cancer was a Category 4 hurricane: Without treatment I faced the prospect of death, but exercising hope and faith kept me anchored as I submitted to God’s plan for my life.

PAUL IN THE PERFECT STORM
    A favorite motif used by the apostle Paul to explain spiritual principles could be called a nautical theme, with numerous references to storms, anchors, sailing, buffeting winds. Paul knew his readers could relate to these metaphors because much of first-century life revolved around the sea. It was a primary means of travel, it was a source of livelihood for many, and it provided much of their sustenance.
    I imagine there’s another reason Paul packed his writings with such imagery—personal experience. Acts chapter 27 records Paul experiencing a harrowing and hair-raising lost-at-sea drama that definitely tested his hope and faith. Paul had been arrested in Jerusalem, charged with propagating beliefs contrary to Jewish law, inciting riots, and being a ringleader of a sect.
    After appealing his case all the way to Caesar, Paul was put on a ship headed to Rome with a couple hundred other people (prisoners, soldiers, and sailors). That’s when things got really dicey. Almost immediately the ship ran into treacherous weather. The crew kept the vessel afloat . . . barely.

TOSSED AND LOST AT