Hope in the Promise: Holding on to Light When Life Feels Heavy
Pastor Reed Sowell
The Christmas season has a strange way of revealing how much hope we’re carrying. Some years, the season feels lighthearted—bright lights, warm gatherings, the comfort of old songs. Other years, it hits differently. It exposes the weight we’ve been managing and the questions we’ve quietly tucked away. Yet within the ancient story of God’s promise to send a Savior, there’s a picture of hope that doesn’t bend under pressure. Click the link above for the full message.
This article explores that kind of hope—the grounded, resilient hope woven throughout Scripture and revealed most clearly in the birth, life, and reign of Jesus. The story spans centuries, unfolds through prophets and ordinary people, rises in the tension between what has begun and what is still to come, and ultimately calls us to plant our lives in something far sturdier than circumstances.
The Kind of Hope We Actually Need
Hope can feel complicated. Sometimes it feels natural and easy. Other times, it seems like too much to ask of yourself. When you pause long enough to consider it, you might recognize that hope is tied to trust—expectation that something good is possible even when you can’t see it. Hope reaches beyond optimism. It isn’t a positive mindset or empty wish. It’s desire mixed with belief.
And the thing about hope is that where you place it really matters. A sports team might give you excitement. A job promotion might give you a sense of stability. But real hope, the deep-in-your-chest kind, involves your future, your family, your purpose, and even what happens beyond your final breath. That type of hope can’t be anchored in things that shift every season.
Because hope, at its core, holds onto something steady. Something that doesn’t crumble under pressure or disappear when life takes a turn you didn’t expect. That kind of hope has to be sourced from outside of us—something strong enough to hold our questions and still carry us forward.
Looking Back to Isaiah: The Promise of a Light in the Darkness
More than 700 years before Jesus was born, the people of Judah were struggling under pressure that felt unbearable. Their nation was dealing with military threats, corrupt leadership, spiritual decline, and a sense that everything was spiraling into darkness. It was messy and discouraging, and from their perspective, there wasn’t a clear way out.
Into that tension, God spoke through the prophet Isaiah:
“For to us a child is born,
to us a son is given,
and the government will be on his shoulders.
And he will be called
Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God,
Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
Of the greatness of his government and peace
there will be no end.
He will reign on David’s throne
and over his kingdom,
establishing and upholding it
with justice and righteousness
from that time on and forever.
The zeal of the Lord Almighty will accomplish this.”
(Isaiah 9:6–7, NIV)
There’s something striking about this. When the people were most overwhelmed, God didn’t offer a better political strategy or a stronger army. He promised a child. A child who would be a King unlike any other. A King whose authority would extend far beyond a single nation or era. A King who would bring justice, peace, and righteousness.
This wasn’t a vague spiritual concept. It was a concrete promise. And even though it wouldn’t be fulfilled for seven centuries, it stood as a steady reminder that God sees, God acts, and God doesn’t forget what He has spoken.
Why a Child? Understanding God’s Version of Nearness
It’s easy to overlook the significance of Jesus arriving as a baby. But it wasn’t accidental or symbolic just for the sake of symbolism. A child represents nearness. Vulnerability. Presence. God didn’t remain distant or removed from the mess. He entered it. He stepped right into the very brokenness Isaiah described.
In ancient times, kings wore emblems on their shoulders to signify authority, so the line “the government will be on his shoulders” meant something powerful: Jesus carries authority that is global and eternal. His rule doesn’t hinge on political cycles or human strength. His reign is rooted in the throne God promised to David—a throne that would never be taken away or diminished.
So God’s answer to a hopeless people was this: Hope is coming. Real hope. And He will be with you.
Hope Fulfilled in Luke: When the Promise Breaks Through History
The prophecy in Isaiah may have felt distant, especially when the people endured exile, destruction, and disappointment. Yet the promise stood firm. And in Luke 1, the story turns:
“God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth...
to a virgin... named Mary.
The angel said, ‘Do not be afraid, Mary;
you have found favor with God.
You will conceive and give birth to a son,
and you are to call him Jesus.
He will be great
and will be called the Son of the Most High.
The Lord God will give him
the throne of his father David,
and he will reign over Jacob’s descendants forever;
his kingdom will never end.’”
(Luke 1:26–33, NIV)
What Isaiah saw from a distance, Mary witnessed firsthand. Gabriel wasn’t announcing a new idea—he was announcing that the plan had already begun. The King Isaiah described had finally arrived.
But it’s important to remember that the people misunderstood the promise. They expected a political revolution, someone to overthrow the Roman government. They expected a throne they could see. Jesus came to do something bigger. His mission wasn’t to create a better earthly system—it was to usher in the Kingdom of Heaven.
Jesus came to build a kingdom:
of transformed hearts
with a reach that outlives nations and empires
that will one day cover the whole earth
His reign began the moment He arrived, but the fullness of His kingdom is still ahead. We live in this space between “already” and “not yet,” a tension that invites us to hope with anticipation.
Why God’s Timing Doesn’t Look Like Ours
The promise in Isaiah took 700 years to reach fulfillment. That alone should challenge the idea that God moves on our schedules. It may be frustrating, but it’s also strangely comforting. We don’t follow a God who rushes or panics. He fulfills every promise with precision, even when it feels like nothing is happening.
The writer of Hebrews puts it simply:
“Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess,
for he who promised is faithful.”
(Hebrews 10:23, NIV)
Unswervingly is not a word we often use, but it communicates something important: hope is something you cling to intentionally. Hope doesn’t sit back. It holds on.
What we see throughout Scripture is a pattern. God promises. God moves. God fulfills. And God invites His people to keep their eyes on who He is rather than what they see in front of them.
Finding Hope When Life Feels Like Both Joy and Grief
Life rarely operates in clean categories. It’s often messy, layered, confusing, and beautiful all at once. You can experience gratitude and grief at the same time. You can feel peace and anxiety in the same season. You can celebrate something wonderful in the same week that you mourn something heartbreaking.
Scripture doesn’t ignore that complexity. It makes space for it.
One of the clearest examples comes from the book of Lamentations. Traditionally attributed to the prophet Jeremiah, it’s written after the unthinkable happened: the fall of Jerusalem. The temple destroyed. Families displaced. Dreams crushed. The kind of devastation that leaves a permanent mark.
In the midst of that grief, we read:
“I remember my affliction...
and my soul is downcast within me.
Yet this I call to mind
and therefore I have hope:
Because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed,
for his compassions never fail.
They are new every morning;
great is your faithfulness.
‘The Lord is my portion; therefore I will wait for him.’
The Lord is good to those whose hope is in him...”
(Lamentations 3:19–26, NIV)
This isn’t denial. This isn’t pretending. This is honesty combined with perspective. Lamentations shows us something vital: hope doesn’t erase pain, but it breaks through it.
Hope is remembering God’s character when everything else is falling apart. It’s not shallow positivity. It’s the deep conviction that God’s compassion renews even when we’re exhausted. It’s the courage to say, “This hurts, but God is still faithful.”
Learning to See Hope in Any Circumstance
Hope rooted in Jesus isn’t dependent on how steady your circumstances are. It isn’t tied to a perfect season or an uninterrupted streak of good news. Real hope is grounded in the fact that Jesus came into a broken world, not to avoid its pain but to redeem it.
There’s a difference between hoping everything works out and hoping in the One who holds all things together. And the truth is, the people who wrote about hope in Scripture weren’t surrounded by ease. They wrote from prisons, deserts, ruins, and exile.
Hope doesn’t wait for perfect conditions.
It grows in the middle of real life.
Remembering What God Has Already Done
Sometimes the best way to strengthen your hope is to look backward instead of forward. To remember the ways God has already been faithful. The times He carried you, provided for you, surprised you, restored you, redirected you, or simply gave you endurance when you had none left.
Making a list isn’t cliché—it’s grounding. It shifts hope from theory to memory. You begin to realize that your story is full of God showing up. And if He has done it before, He can do it again.
Here’s a practice worth trying this week:
Make a list of the ways God has been faithful to you and your family.
Don’t filter. Don’t try to make everything sound spiritual or polished. Just remember. You may be surprised at what rises to the surface.
Planting Your Hope in God’s Promises
If hope was God’s plan all along, then it makes sense to plant our hope in His promises—not in temporary things. God’s promises have weight. They carry history, consistency, and the track record of a God who has never failed to come through.
Here are examples of the kinds of promises found throughout Scripture:
God promises to be near
God promises to strengthen the weary
God promises to guide those who seek Him
God promises to forgive
God promises to restore
God promises to renew
God promises eternal life
God promises peace
God promises wisdom to those who ask
God promises to complete the work He began
Taking hold of these promises is not wishful thinking. It’s choosing to build your hope on something that won’t collapse.
Living a Life That Reflects Hope
When hope sinks in deeply enough, it affects the way you live. It shapes perspective. It influences decisions. It changes the way you speak, respond, forgive, pray, and endure. It doesn’t remove hardship, but it gives you a lens that sees beyond what is right in front of you.
Living with hope requires intentional perspective shifts:
Am I seeing life only through what I feel today?
Or am I seeing life through the reality of eternity?
We may or may not experience every form of healing we long for in this life, but the promise of Jesus guarantees healing in eternity. That doesn’t make our present experiences insignificant. It simply reminds us that hope is rooted in something larger than our timeline.
And this kind of hope is powered by the Holy Spirit. It isn’t something you force. It isn’t something you earn. It’s something you ask God for and lean into.
“May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him,
so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.”
(Romans 15:13, NIV)
Overflowing hope isn’t based on circumstances—it’s based on trust. Trust that God is who He says He is. Trust that His promises stand. Trust that the story He’s writing is bigger than what we see.
Three Practical Ways to Strengthen Your Hope This Season
These three practices rise again and again throughout Scripture and have carried believers through seasons far harder than our own. Incorporate them into your daily rhythm and see what happens:
1. Plant Your Hope in God’s Promises
Make Scripture your anchor. Choose one promise to carry with you each day. Speak it. Pray it. Write it down.
2. Remember God’s Faithfulness
Take time to list moments when God has carried you. Reminders of His past faithfulness rekindle present-day hope.
3. Live Like Hope Is Your Default
Let your words, actions, and choices reflect the hope you already have in Jesus. Not forced positivity—real, grounded hope.
Hope grows when we choose it, practice it, and return to it again and again.
Call to Action: What Will You Do With This Hope Today?
Take a moment to ask yourself:
What promise do I need to hold onto today?
Where have I seen God’s faithfulness in my life recently?
How can I reflect hope to someone else this week?
Don’t let the weight of life keep you from leaning into the hope that has been offered to you. Hope is not fragile. It’s not naive. It’s not out of reach. Hope is a Person—and His name is Jesus.
Further Reading
“The Purpose of Christmas” by Rick Warren
https://www.harpercollins.com/products/the-purpose-of-christmas-rick-warren“Hidden Christmas: The Surprising Truth Behind the Birth of Christ” by Timothy Keller
https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/317577/hidden-christmas-by-timothy-keller
Other Links
Want to hear more? Check out last week’s message titled “A Kingdom That Cannot Be Shaken” on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cQ6UeOqB4kY
Explore more resources like classes, studies, and tools at: https://www.viewchurch.co/resources
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Discover a powerful, practical exploration of biblical hope rooted in the promise of Jesus—from Isaiah’s prophecy to the birth of Christ. Learn how to hold onto hope, remember God’s faithfulness, and live with confidence through every season.
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