3 Signs Your Hope Might Be Misplaced

Ashlee Beasley // 1.28.21

Looking to learn more about hope? Check out this week's Podcast episode: Why We Should Give Thanks in Hard Things on our Hope on the Homefront Podcast. You can also listen on Apple Podcast and Spotify!

While Corrie Ten Boom sat in a filthy concentration camp covered in fleas, her sister, Betsy, told her to thank God for them. Confused and filled with despair, Corrie just couldn't understand how she could thank God for something so disgusting.

Feeling the heaviness of her sister‘s heart, Betsy reminded Corrie of 1 Thessalonians 5 "Give thanks in all circumstances for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus." They were starving, dirty and terrified.

Yet two sisters, stood side by side in a cold, dirty prison and they thanked the Lord for the fleas. Later, they would find out those tiny little pests were the very thing protecting their lives. You can hear more here.

The Ten Boom sisters knew God's promises. They trusted Him and they obeyed His Word even when it made absolutely no sense.

They placed their hope in The Lord and because of this they experienced real hope that would never run out.

A hope that anchored them in the middle of devastation.

A hope that steadied their minds and brought peace to their hearts. We want you to know that kind of hope, military wife. Real hope that silences the racing thoughts of uncertainty and steadies an anxious heart; hope that allows you to laugh without fear of the future.

So, let's do a quick heart check together and make sure your hope is not in the wrong things.

Here a few signs it might be:

1. You're Looking to Others for Wisdom First Constantly seeking another's opinion before asking The Lord is a good sign our hope may be in people and not God. Although gathering advice can be a great way to make decisions, we want to make sure we're getting that wisdom from the right place. People possess knowledge, but only The Lord holds true wisdom. Seeking Him first, through prayer or His Word, will help you learn to discern the conversations you're having. The Bible says that The Lord is a Good Father-He gives wisdom for anyone who asks. The Holy Spirit is an incredible teacher and He will always guide you to right sources of wisdom according to the will of God.

2. You're Having Trouble Releasing Control

The need for control always comes down to trust and fear. Maybe we don't trust someone else to handle something as well as we could or we're afraid something might go wrong. When we hand over control to the Lord we're ultimately saying that we trust Him. Our hope is no longer in ourselves, but in God and He is the one who can truly work a situation out for our good. The Lord has never broken a single promise since the beginning of time and He won't start with you. You can trust Him with your dreams, your fears and everything precious to your heart.

3. You're Not Sure What God's Promises Are

This one is pretty simple and certainly is not meant to make you feel bad. However, we can't hold onto something we don't know is there.

If you want to learn more about God's promises to you and His unwavering faithfulness, we'd love to help you learn. Join us on our Podcast, Hope on the Homefront, every Tuesday. You can even start now with this episode about hope. We love you, military wife! You are never alone here.