The Psalmist says it
poetically, lyrically, “My hope is
in the Lord! For with the Lord there is
steadfast love, and with him is great power to redeem.
I wait for the Lord, my soul waits, and in his word I hope;
My hope is in the Lord!” The Psalmist returns to the theme of hope throughout the Book
of Psalms.
It was with this thought in mind that I chose the
word “Hope” for the stones we used on the Fourth Sunday in Lent, the service in
which we remember the covenantal promises made to us through our baptisms. With
just a sprinkling of water, we are welcomed into a life of hope, for we are
welcomed into a life with our Lord Jesus Christ.
As our Book of Order
reminds us, “In baptism, God claims us
and seals us to show that we belong to God. God frees us from sin and death,
uniting us with Jesus Christ in his death and resurrection. In baptism, we die
to what separates us from God and are raised to newness of life in Christ.” Through our baptisms, we
begin a life grounded in hope. As God said through the prophet Jeremiah: “For
surely I know the plans I have for you, says the Lord,
plans for your welfare and not for harm, to give you a future with hope.”
Lent is the ideal time for
us to remind ourselves of this promise of hope. As we go about our Lenten spiritual
housecleaning, sweeping away the things in our lives that get between us and
God, we can feel the sun emerging as though from behind a dark cloud as we walk
again in the light of hope. We can join
our voices with the Psalmist: “For you, O Lord, are my hope, my trust, O Lord, from my youth…I will hope continually.”
The word “hope” means “a
feeling of expectation”, and our expectation is that as disciples of Christ, we
can know wholeness and peace. Life can throw profound challenges our way and
life’s road can be bumpy, pot-holed, winding, even frightening. But still, we
can walk in hope, for we walk with our risen Lord.
As the apostles finished
their Passover meal with our Lord on the night of his arrest, they would have sung
words from Psalm 118: “O give thanks to
the Lord, for he is good; his steadfast love endures forever!...Out of my
distress I called on the Lord; the Lord answered me…With the Lord on my side, I
do not fear….The Lord is God and he has given us light.” Even in the gloom
that hung over that meal like thick smoke, the apostles would have sung the
Psalmist’s words with hope.
We can walk confidently
through life, for through the grace and love of God given us in the living
Christ, we walk in hope. So as we look to the joy of Easter, sing out with the
Psalmist, “I will rejoice in hope, for you, O Lord,
are my hope, my trust!”
Alleluia!
Pastor Skip
