Lessons from a Basset Hound, part 4: Hope

(Belle is back by popular demand. And by popular, I mean, four requests. Which is a lot for me. And probably, for Belle.)

Look at that face. Have you ever seen anything more pitiful? Those eyes could not possibly be any sadder. Give that dog a Prozac.
For heaven’s sake! From that forlorn expression, you wouldn’t guess that this dog is loved and walked and played with and treated pretty much like royalty around here. Speaking of royalty, she is even named for a princess. Belle—our beauty. (Beauty is in the eye of the beholder, I suppose.)

Belle makes me think of Eeyore. “Good morning, Pooh Bear,” said Eeyore gloomily. “If it is a good morning, which I doubt.”

Belle also reminds me of me. I can relate to her melancholy mood. More often than not, I see the negative, not the positive—the problems, not the blessings.

But lately I’ve noticed something else behind Belle’s sad eyes. A tiny glimmer, perhaps, barely perceptible. I catch a glimpse of it when I cook dinner, and she patiently waits by the stove, wishing I’ll toss her a bite. I see the spark when I sit on the couch and Belle lays that depressed face in my lap, willing me to scratch behind her ears.

It’s small, but it’s there.

Hope.

I’m not very good at hope. I don’t like to get my hopes up, because, oh, doesn’t it hurt when they come back down again? Isn’t it safer and less painful and more practical to expect the worst, rather than hope for the best? That way, I’m not disappointed.

Or am I? Hope isn’t about cockeyed optimism; it’s about faith. The absence of hope means the presence of despair. God is the God of hope, not despair.

“And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us.” (Romans 5:5)

Hope in Me, Amy. Sit at My feet and wait expectantly for the good I promise to give.

Rest in Me, Amy. Live in the joyful abundance that is yours in Jesus.

Stop doubting, Amy. Quit guarding your heart, and believe what I say. BELIEVE WHAT I SAY. I sent Jesus “at just the right time,” to pay for sin and live again, so that you can have hope.

Hope isn’t just a tiny glimmer; it’s more than a spark of cautious desire. Because of Jesus Christ, hope is life-giving, confident expectancy. Indeed, hope does not disappoint!