A Steady Hope

 

“The tree might give up hope altogether under the weight of the winter snow if it were not aware of the coming spring”

Do you realize that it is under the worst conditions that character is developed?

Paul put it this way:

“…we can be full of joy here and now even in our trials and troubles. Taken in the right spirit these very things will give us patient endurance; this in turn will develop a mature character, and a character of this sort produces a steady hope, a hope that will never disappoint us...” – Romans 5:3-5 (Phillips)

There is no other way for mature character to be formed but in the harshest environments. God puts you through these seasons of testing, some more severe than others, because He is producing in you that hope which Scripture describes as steady and “will never disappoint”.

This steady hope cannot be grown otherwise; it springs from deep within you, out of a love God pours into your heart by His own Spirit living inside you. So that, even when you’re going through the winter storms of life, and God seems cold and distant, you can find comfort in knowing that He is indeed with you because His Holy Spirit resides in you.

“No situation, no matter how wretched it seems, but has some sort of comfort attending it” – Goldsmith

Begin to see these challenging times as seasonal, and rest assured, as with all seasons, it shall soon pass, for Winter always gives way to Spring. And, after you have patiently endured, you will be a different person, with a different outlook and a different sense of purpose – that is character building; that is forging a steadfast hope.

Such steady hope is the perpetual fuel that propels you forward, though your winter may be long and extreme in nature.

Such steady hope has the power to keep you focused on God, and the coming Spring, despite the biting cold and frost.

Beloved, your Winter experience is not in vain, it is a necessary phase of your spiritual journey, so savour the time of dank as preparation to burst forth anew, all the while remembering that winter makes the dawn of spring all the more beautiful.

“…the winter is past, the rain is over and gone. The flowers are springing up and the time of the singing of birds has come. Yes, spring is here.” – Song of Songs 2:11-12 (TLB)

Amen †

Shelley Johnson “A Steady Hope” © 2017 revisited August 24, 2025