A Prisoner of Hope in 2014

During the last few days of 2013, I heard so many people talking or posting on Facebook how glad they would be for 2013 to soon be over. Many of those people were in a countdown to GOOD BYE 2013. During those last days of 2013 I read a verse that shook me to my core.

I started to reflect on how a person can become a prisoner of despair during difficult times. Sitting in my quiet time chair I prayed that in 2014 my soul’s default setting would be on a being a prisoner of hope rather than a captive of despair. As I looked back on 2013, it was a difficult year but the fruitfulness was as abundant as the trials. It was an “Ephraim” year that only encourages me to head for the stronghold of Jesus and willingly wear the “prisoner clothes of Hope”. A prisoner of hope knows deep in his soul the he/she is part of God’s FAVOR-ITE Tribe! Isaiah was prisoner of hope as clearly declared in Isaiah 61:7

If I typed Thank You in every known language, it would not express the depth of Ken’s and my gratitude for the sacrificial giving to our ministry account at the end of 2013. For months Ken and I have been praying and discussing the serious need in our ministry account. We were so busy serving this fall, that we honestly didn’t have the time to call everyone of our support team and tell them of our very specific need. We just kept praying and serving and refusing to be prisoners of doubt. We were counting on God’s holy nudge in the hearts of people who would choose to send funds to the ministry at the end of the year. Major THANKS for those who listened to the holy nudge.

“Your goodness is so great! You have stored up great blessings for those who honor you. You have done so much for those who come to you for protection, blessing them before the watching world”.  -Psalm 31:19