This Is Why It’s Safe to Hope – Day 7 of Handmade

DAY 7, OCTOBER 7

Hope

“How you view tomorrow affects how you live today.”
– Caleb Kaltenbach

Sometimes I worry when I think about the future.

  • I know worrying is futile.
  • I know it’s faithless.
  • I ask God to break me of it.

And slowly, ever so slowly, he is removing it.

I haven’t released it totally (I still have a long way to go). But at least I see progress.

I have hope.

God of Tomorrow

Books like this help – God of Tomorrow: How to Overcome the Fears of Today and Renew Your Hope for the Future.

Because they point to God.

How you view tomorrow affects how you live today

While I don’t agree with everything Caleb Kaltenbach writes, I agree enough.

And I definitely agree with this:

Why hold on to hope for tomorrow? Because God will be there.

Not because he will make everything you wish for come true.
Not because you won’t have disappointments along the way.

But because God will show up in your tomorrow. He always does.

“Let’s confidently point people in the direction of what hope has to offer: God himself. He himself is the focal point that we look to when we’re fatigued, upset, saddened, or troubled about the coming days. Hope reminds us that our best days are ahead, not behind us.”

More Quotes

Here are a few quotes from God of Tomorrow that moved me. Maybe they’ll move you, too.

“Since tomorrow belongs to God, we can graciously offer hope to people today.”

~ * ~

“There is someone greater than our worst fears.”

~ * ~

“God isn’t afraid of tomorrow, and neither should we be.”

~ * ~

“We can take comfort in the bigger picture that Christianity has outlasted and will outlast any one person who leads a political party, city, state, country, gang, or empire. There’s great freedom in knowing that our faith doesn’t rely on the politics of any one person or nation. Our faith rests securely in the rule of God on earth today and his promise for a better tomorrow.”

~ * ~

“God is on his throne. He won’t relinquish it. He’s not pacing back and forth with anxiety, wondering how things will turn out.”

~ * ~

“God has already been to the tomorrow you’re excited about. God has already seen the tomorrow you’re dreading. Tomorrow belongs to God, not you.”

Three Questions

Our three questions for today are:

(1) Are you a worrier or not?

(2) What’s one thing you hope will happen today?

(3) What’s something you hoped for that God did fulfill? What hasn’t come true?

* * *

What are your answers? Please share in the comments.

My answers

(1) Unfortunately, yes, I am a worrier. My mind drifts to the imaginable possibilities. I have to consciously force it elsewhere.

(2) I’m hoping my granddaughter will let me see her first new baby tooth today!

(3) In younger years, I remember hoping for different guys to be “the one” but I am SO very thankful that God didn’t let those come true. He knew instead that Jeff would definitely be the one for me. He was very much worth waiting for!

More here

  • Get Your Hopes Up
    Life never goes as expected. We’re often afraid to get our hopes up. But here’s why we should.
  • When You Want to Hope
    Will I ever see these kids again? I want to hope that their lives will turn out good. But will they?
  • 3 Ways to Have More Hope
    We all have times we need more hope. Here are 3 ways to choose to have more hope.

My thanks to Net Galley
for the review copy of this book

Get the whole Handmade series here

Handmade - Finding God in Your Story

4 thoughts on “This Is Why It’s Safe to Hope – Day 7 of Handmade

  1. Shannan

    (1) I’m very much a worrier but we’ve been working on it and it’s not nearly as bad as it use to be.

    (2) Having had an exceptionally busy weekend and feeling sick through most of it I am hoping to get some rest today – maybe even a nap. Perhaps a cup of tea (or two) and a good book.

    (3) I have a wonderful hubby – I prayed for one since I was 12-years-old. If I’m being completely honest, what I have hoped for in the past, has pretty much come true and the things that I have hoped for that haven’t happen yet are because of my own doing.

    1. LisaNotes Post author

      We sound the same on worrying, Shannan. I’m better at worrying less, but I still worry too much. 🙁 Hope you’re feeling better today and got a nap and a book! 🙂

  2. bill (cycleguy)

    Ironically, my New Morning Mercies devotion was on hope. Vertical hope not horizontal hope. Horizontal hope is temporary; vertical hope is permanent. Horizontal hope has an expiration date: vertical does not. I liked Caleb’s book and thought it well worth recommending and reading.

    1. LisaNotes Post author

      Good timing with your devotional. I don’t know that I’ve heard of the phrases of vertical and horizontal hope, but I definitely appreciate that distinction! I think I first heard of Caleb’s book from your blog and it inspired me to read it myself.

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