HOPE FOR THE BEST Thursday, April 7
Romans 5:5 And hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us. My grandfather had a saying. He would tell us, “Hope for the best and prepare for the worst.” As an optimist, I typically choose to hope for the best, but as a realist, I usually prepare for the worst. I believe that hope and love are choices, and one we make every day. When we wake up, we have no idea what the day will bring, but I used to always err on the side of hope that the day will be good. When my mom was going through issues with her digestive system, I had hope that it was nothing major, but as she started to demand the doctors look more closely into it, the more my hope waned into fear that something was very wrong. Finally, when they did an endoscopic ultrasound, our fears were confirmed – pancreatic cancer and gallbladder disease. Thankfully, the stones in her gallbladder caused the pain she was feeling and all other digestive issues, which allowed the medical team to find the cancer tumors and give us a hopeful outcome. This fall and winter were rocky to say the least and tested my ability to remain hopeful for a good outcome. When I couldn’t find my hope though, I had prayer warriors to help. I’d like to say that we are at the end of this cancer journey, but that’s not the case. I’d like to say that I remain hopeful for a good outcome, but that varies day to day. What I do know is that I have a community of supporters who can help me find that hope when I struggle to. What I know is that our loving God has not left my side, even when I’m not filled with hope, and he will be there with me and my family, no matter the outcome. So I will continue to choose hope and choose love. God of enduring hope and love, please continue to be with those who are struggling to find hope in our world, in our lives, and in each other. I pray that you will continue to work through me and others to choose to love and to hope each day so that your vision for a world united in love will come to fruition. In Jesus’ name we pray, Amen. Danielle Mitchell
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