Hope is an interesting phenomenon.
With hope, people can thrive despite their circumstances. Without hope, people can slip into depression, despondency and despair.

But not all hope is created equal.

I can hope it will snow in August in Southern California, but it’s just not going happen. I can hope it will be hotter than blue blazes, and I will probably get my wish.

Hope, by nature is only as good as the object.
People you love will let you down.
Stock Markets will crash.
Nice cars get wrecked.
Parades will get rained on.
Children will not always grow up to be professional athletes.
Jobs will be lost.
Churches will disappoint you.
Hair will have bad days.
Beauty will fade.
Exercise all you want, get the perfect body, and you will still die one day.

To put it bluntly, things we hope in have a propensity to be disappointing.

When we are honest with ourselves and recognize this truth, it can be down right discouraging. The point of this little exercise isn’t to plunge us into the pit of despair (or the fire swamp), it’s to direct our hope elsewhere.

What we need is a better hope.

Let me explain.

Years ago, I nearly drowned on the Iowa river on a canoeing trip. All day long I had relied on this canoe to carry me safely down the river. But in a split second, I unexpectedly lost my footing and fell in the water. The canoe — my source of safety and mode of transportation, was swept away, and I was left without anything to hold onto.

Here is the problem: Like that canoe, the things we hope in often are swept away and we are left without anything to hold on to. What we need is a hope that is anchored. A hope that cannot be swept away.

This week I was having a conversation with someone about hope, and this verse came to mind:

“This hope we have as an anchor of the soul, both sure and steadfast…” – Hebrews 6:19

The book of Hebrews was written to a group of people who were on the verge of giving up. The writer of this letter tells these people: Jesus is a hope that you can anchor your soul to.

Jesus Christ isn’t just another hope, He is our ONLY hope.
Every other system, every other trinket, vacation or activity cannot deliver.

Our way of life is broken.
Our strength is tattered.
We our hopeless — yet we fiercely rebel against God and His laws.

And it get’s worse: The paycheck, the judgement for our rebellious way of life, is death. Jesus, the perfect Son of God, died for our brokenness and for our rebellion. He paid our debt so we can be in a right relationship with God.

If we turn away from our rebellion and believe in Jesus Christ– we are choosing to anchor ourselves to Him. He is secure and safe. If we don’t anchor ourselves to Him — we will be swept away completely and suffer not just in this life, but in eternity.

But wait, there’s more.

When we anchor ourselves to Jesus, when we stay connected to Him through prayer, worship, obedience to His words — we have a continual lifeline of peace and joy despite circumstances and we have HOPE, real hope that we can hold onto no matter what.

You see, while the things we hope in may fail us and be swept away — we can anchor our lives to Jesus.

He is sure.
He is steadfast.
He will not fail.
He will not leave you or forsake you.
He is totally trustworthy.
His Word is true.

What are you trusting in?
Where is your hope?
Let it be in Jesus, for He is the Anchor of our souls.