What To Do When I've Lost My Hope.
“There shall come forth a shoot from the stump of Jesse, and a branch from his roots shall bear fruit. And the Spirit of the LORD shall rest upon him, the Spirit of wisdom and understanding, the Spirit of counsel and might, the Spirit of knowledge and the fear of the LORD.”
Isaiah 11:1-2 ESV
We’ve all lived through hopeless seasons; those dark nights when you can’t seem to find the “good” in any of it. We have looked for hope in relationships or knowledge, guilty pleasures or sinful temptations only to come up empty. We question, “What do I do when I’ve lost all of my hope?”
The answer my friend is JESUS. You turn to Jesus - The Hope of all the world. I don’t know about you, but I’ve been in a season of mourning. We all go through those seasons. Mine has lasted more years than I’d like, but I’m not God. He knows what’s best.
In these dark evenings of the soul - these night seasons - the only thing we can hold onto that does not change is Jesus. He is the HOPE of all the world.
STUDY the Word.
In the end of chapter 10, Isaiah prophesies the destruction of Israel as a vast forrest cut down with an axe because of their arrogance. But as Isaiah does, he continues the pattern of judgement and hope in the following chapter.
In chapter 11:1-2, the Messianic prophesy continues. Out of these fallen trees of humanity, life will come forth. A small bud remains waiting to burst through the ground of fallen humanity. Out of the family of Jesse, a greater David will come. Our Savior. Jesus.
APPLY the Word.
This new King will be filled with and empowered by the Spirit of the Lord. The spirit of wisdom and understanding rests on Him to make decisions as a Mighty Ruler. And yet, we often seek counsel from everyone and everything else before we go to Him.
The spirit of counsel and strength are in His hands. He is our Wonderful Counselor. And yet we often go through life wondering what our purpose or life’s plan is. The word counselor in the Hebrew is êtsâh and means advice, counsel, purpose. What would happen if we went to Him to discover our purpose and then use His strength to carry it out?
The spirit of knowledge and the fear of the Lord is His. Jesus, this offshoot of Jesse and a greater David, has an intimate relationship with His Father. He holds esteemed reverence, loyalty, and dependence on God all summed up in The Fear of the Lord. Do we have this relationship with Him?
LIVE the Word.
Remember that this prophecy of Isaiah is full of Hope. We have the hope of Jesus. He is here. He is with us, yet so many of us, as His children, do not cling to all that He is and all that He has done.
Let’s change that, huh? Let’s live in His counsel and strength, wisdom and understanding, knowledge, and fear of the Lord.
