Hope is a word that is commonly misunderstood, especially at times when our faith is tested and we face difficulties.  Why?  We forget to fix our eyes upon the place where true hope can be found.  During difficult days, two particular Psalms have touched my life.  I always end up reading them over and over.

First is Psalm 121: “I lift up my eyes to the hills.  From where does my help come?  My help comes from the Lord, who made heaven and earth.  The Lord is your keeper; the Lord is your shade on your right hand. The sun shall not strike you by day, nor the moon by night. The Lord will keep you from all evil; He will keep your life.  The Lord will keep your going out and your coming in from this time forth and forevermore.”  In that season of life – when if seem like everything sucks!  I want to throw in the towel, in that very moment these words to come to my mind: "My help comes from the Lord.”  Then, I speak to my soul and tell it that my relief comes only from God, that He is controlling the situation. These words
give me hope and encouragement that this will pass - and that God is the one who guards my soul. 

On the other hand, Psalm 73 begins by saying that being envious of others causes our steps to slip. How often do we focus on and compare ourselves to others and believe that the other person's life is better than ours?  Not so!  It’s my prayer that in these times we may be able to say as the Psalmist: "Whom have I in heaven but You?  And there is nothing on earth that I desire besides You.  My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever." (Psalm 73: 25–26)

I don’t have any mountains around my house but from my deck, I can see beautiful sunsets each evening. Many times when I’m feeling exhausted in heart and mind, I often sit there and immediately these words come to mind; “Whom have I in heaven but You?  Where will my help come from? My help comes from the Lord.”  These precious words enable me to speak to my soul. They remind me that in His
love, no matter what I am going through, He will keep me “from this time forth and forevermore.”  In times of trouble, may our hearts know where to run - in Him we find a shelter from the passing storm. In Him we find true hope.