Despair and Hope

Scripture Reading: Job 10:18-22, Psalm 88:1-18, 2 Corinthians 1:8-11, Lamentations 3:19-26, Matthew 28:1-10, 1 Peter 1:3-5, Psalm 62:5-8

Oh, despair. It’s a topic that needs very little introduction. But the alternative to our despair being hope? That’s a new one.

Hope is tricky to talk about since it’s easy to associate it with specific outcomes. Even as we place our hope in Christ, there are still ways our hearts can confuse the experience of hope with a despair-free existence.

The best articulation I have of what it feels like to receive hope from despair is to have a deepened intimacy with God. Here’s what I mean:

There is priceless wisdom that comes through seeking God in suffering. There are some things only the Holy Spirit can teach. No matter how trustworthy or wise a human voice might be, some revelations only ring true when our time with God bridges gaps between our mind, heart, and soul. With this in mind, any struggle to be near Him is never wasted effort. After all, “The LORD is good to those who wait for him, to the person who seeks him” (Lamentations 3:25).

We share a deeper connection with Jesus when we embrace suffering. A few years ago I had a season of grief coincide with Easter, and y’all, my aisle should’ve had a splash zone warning! The story of Jesus’s suffering became real in ways it hadn’t before. Just as we know to expect pain, we also remember the joy of “He is not here. For he has risen, just as he said” (Matthew 28:6). And now, my faith is richer because of the personal glimpses my suffering can give me into how much Jesus’s endurance cost.

If I let it, pain provides a way to God. At times, passages like Psalm 62:6—“He alone is my rock and my salvation, my stronghold; I will not be shaken”—can really frustrate me. What if I do feel shaken, like I did not have a stronghold to protect me, like there is no rock to keep my feet on solid ground? I think that anger stems from an expectation that a stronghold is going to be a pain-free place. In reality, my pain is why I need Him as a stronghold in the first place! Comfort and peace certainly come from His presence, but even if I don’t feel those things at all times, it doesn’t mean God’s ability to be my refuge suddenly lost potency. I’ve learned that as I depend on Him, He knows how to provide what my heart needs—whether it’s a truth to comfort me or an open lap to cry on.

I wish I had way more than these 500-or-so words to talk about the complex mystery of how hope comes from despair (or better yet, your address and a warm beverage and a soft couch cushion!). What I do hope you explore in today’s passages is a gentle, yet firm, reminder that God does not ignore despair. In fact, He’s made it so that our suffering is the exact place we’ll find Him.

Written by Kayla De La Torre