Hope.  It is there for all of us Imperfect Wives.

To our marriages we can apply Honesty. Overlooking. Perseverance. Excellence.

Hope, while offered freely to all of us, may seem elusive.  Situations and surprises come to our marriages and the mist and the clouds roll in to veil our hope.

I live in the Central San Joaquin Valley of California and we have the strangest fog here from late November through February.  It is so thick sometimes that you can only see a few feet from the hood of your car in front of you.  Knife-cutting thick!  You have no idea if there is a car in front of you or when your exit might be.  You just can’t see what’s coming!

Hope can be that way as we navigate through challenges in our marriages.  It can be hard to find our way.  But just like I know, since I drive the same road almost daily, that my exit is coming up even though I can’t see, I also understand that hope is being offered by my Lord even though the situation seems to cloud over all I know to be true.

This is where our third element of HOPE comes in — Perseverance.

Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us.  Hebrews 12:1 (NIV)

The writer of Hebrews reminds us to throw off everything that would hold us back from living the life God has for us.  As we “lay aside the weight,” (as the NKJV says) then we allow hope to permeate our situations and marriages.  We have to throw off the things that hinder us and then persevere — keep going.

But beware, we also have to remove the sin which so easily entangles us.

Sin trips us up and our hope is diminished.  What trips you up?

For me, the sin that seems to trip me up is usually one thing — worry.

I’ll tell you ladies, worry will certainly make you fall and get you off course of the race you are running.  It clouds your vision and makes hope seem so distant.

Sin.  It so easily entangles us.

Confess it, repent and run ahead in the race that God has marked out for you.

Persevere.  Stay the course.  Don’t give up.

The writer of Hebrews gives a picture of Moses who persevered, even when he couldn’t see the future.

By faith he left Egypt, not fearing the king’s anger; he persevered because he saw him who is invisible.  Hebrews 11:27 (NIV)

I know when I am driving in dense, thick fog that I pray to see the invisible!  When I am in the midst of the fog in my marriage I try to look for Him who is invisible.  I have learned, and am continuing to learn, that Christ will never leave me.  He will never forsake me.

So I persevere.  (with help from God, who lives in me by His Spirit and a little help from my friends)

Persevering brings hope.  1 Corinthians 13:7 says, “love . . . always hopes, always perseveres.”

Perseverance is an attribute of love.

We all know the power of love.

Love of the Father saved us as He gave His One and Only Son for us.

Love perseveres.

Bring hope to your marriage.

Persevere and lay aside the weight.  Confess sin.  And then, keep on keeping on.

Persevere!

Running the race with you,

Kim ♥