There is a hope that is higher than what the world can give us....
It is a hope that brings life right here.....right now .
Hope that invades the darkest places of a human heart and lifts it above the muck and mire that sin-darkness brings.
It is hope wrapped in a promise given by One who will never break His promises.
Hope that lifts our vision above our current condition.
Hope that fills our hearts in the middle of our current circumstances.
Hope that is divine...
Hope that is pure....
Hope that lays hold of us, as we lay hold of it.
It is a hope that will never be defeated by cancer...
Never defeated by addiction....
Never defeated by death...
It is a hope that is divinely inspired in the heart of One who stands unchallenged.
Hope that came forth at the dawn of creation when all the "LET THERE BE"'s were spoken.
The world tries to offer hope, but the flavor offered is bland and empty.
It's like carnival food....
No redeeming quality so ever, except to satisfy for a moment only to leave you empty and starving for something real.
The hope that I that I speak of was bought and paid for on a hillside. A place that wasn't covered in flowers or butterflies...No it was a place of pain and the air was filled with the cries of men on their way to die. But yet, here in this awful place, Divine Hope was birthed and offered to a lost world.
This Divine Hope was stretched out upon a rough-hewn Roman cross.
This Hope was nailed to the wood by spikes....
Lifted high and dropped low for all the world to see.
In spite of the insults and names hurled at this Hope, it retaliated with the words, "Father! Forgive them, for they know not what they do."
The Hope I speak of was signed, sealed and delivered with three words.....
IT....
IS....
FINISHED!
Those very words are as powerful today, as they were when they were spoken.
The One who died on this cross...
The One who stepped from a tomb into the light of a new day....
Is the very One who powers the hope I've written about.
Hope has a name...
That name is Jesus....
You may be thinking that "Somewhere Over The Rainbow" is an unusual song to be attached to the word hope, but it isn't.
You see, the individual singing the song in the video accompanying today's blog is Danny Daniels...
Danny has made several trips to be with us at Gadsden Vineyard, and with each trip, he would always come out to Rapha to play for the men (Rapha is an in-house treatment program for those in addiction).
The last time Danny was at Rapha, he played this song....
I watched the presence and power of God melt hearts as Danny sang.
Men who had not cried in years, were openly weeping as we all followed Danny through this song of hope.
I can't explain the "how" or "Why" of what happened that night. I just know that for a brief moment, in the lives of men who had been trapped in darkness....the light, love and presence of God broke through, bringing hope where before than wasn't any.
It was an incredible night...
One that I will never forget...
Thank you Danny Daniels for your heart, your voice, and your life.
You led us to a place far beyond and above any rainbow, and showed us the hope that only God can bring to those who are hungry to change.
God on you...
mbb
It is a hope that brings life right here.....right now .
Hope that invades the darkest places of a human heart and lifts it above the muck and mire that sin-darkness brings.
It is hope wrapped in a promise given by One who will never break His promises.
Hope that lifts our vision above our current condition.
Hope that fills our hearts in the middle of our current circumstances.
Hope that is divine...
Hope that is pure....
Hope that lays hold of us, as we lay hold of it.
It is a hope that will never be defeated by cancer...
Never defeated by addiction....
Never defeated by death...
It is a hope that is divinely inspired in the heart of One who stands unchallenged.
Hope that came forth at the dawn of creation when all the "LET THERE BE"'s were spoken.
The world tries to offer hope, but the flavor offered is bland and empty.
It's like carnival food....
No redeeming quality so ever, except to satisfy for a moment only to leave you empty and starving for something real.
The hope that I that I speak of was bought and paid for on a hillside. A place that wasn't covered in flowers or butterflies...No it was a place of pain and the air was filled with the cries of men on their way to die. But yet, here in this awful place, Divine Hope was birthed and offered to a lost world.
This Divine Hope was stretched out upon a rough-hewn Roman cross.
This Hope was nailed to the wood by spikes....
Lifted high and dropped low for all the world to see.
In spite of the insults and names hurled at this Hope, it retaliated with the words, "Father! Forgive them, for they know not what they do."
The Hope I speak of was signed, sealed and delivered with three words.....
IT....
IS....
FINISHED!
Those very words are as powerful today, as they were when they were spoken.
The One who died on this cross...
The One who stepped from a tomb into the light of a new day....
Is the very One who powers the hope I've written about.
Hope has a name...
That name is Jesus....
You may be thinking that "Somewhere Over The Rainbow" is an unusual song to be attached to the word hope, but it isn't.
You see, the individual singing the song in the video accompanying today's blog is Danny Daniels...
Danny has made several trips to be with us at Gadsden Vineyard, and with each trip, he would always come out to Rapha to play for the men (Rapha is an in-house treatment program for those in addiction).
The last time Danny was at Rapha, he played this song....
I watched the presence and power of God melt hearts as Danny sang.
Men who had not cried in years, were openly weeping as we all followed Danny through this song of hope.
I can't explain the "how" or "Why" of what happened that night. I just know that for a brief moment, in the lives of men who had been trapped in darkness....the light, love and presence of God broke through, bringing hope where before than wasn't any.
It was an incredible night...
One that I will never forget...
Thank you Danny Daniels for your heart, your voice, and your life.
You led us to a place far beyond and above any rainbow, and showed us the hope that only God can bring to those who are hungry to change.
God on you...
mbb
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