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At least three times in the Psalms we read: “Why, my soul, are you downcast? Why so disturbed within me? Put your hope in God, for I will yet praise him, my Savior and my God” (Psalm 42:5). Can’t you see the Psalmist talking to himself—like he’s looking himself in the eyes and reminding himself: What’s the matter with you? Why are you so down? Just put your hope in God.
You see, when we lose hope it’s because we’ve taken our minds off our Savior and we’re focused on ourselves, our problem, our failures, our inability to make things right. So, if you need to nourish hope in your life, begin by quoting this verse from Psalm 42:5 – memorize it so it’s right there ready when you need it. Then drive out all those wrong thoughts that are filling your mind with hopelessness by remembering the hope you have because of Jesus.
For example, suppose you’ve just given up hope that things are going to get better on your job, that the coworker who makes your life miserable will ever change, or that your boss will ever recognize and appreciate what you do. It just looks hopeless to you and therefore you are losing your motivation to work hard and do your work with excellence. You need hope! So what can you do?
Talk to yourself like the Psalmist did: Stop thinking about everything that is wrong. Think about what is right! Right there on the job, in the midst of the hopeless situation, put your hope in God. He is trustworthy; his word is true. You won’t be disappointed. But you have to make the choice to pursue hope.
And quite simply, that means you have to spend time in God’s Word and prayer, asking the Holy Spirit to give you hope. We have a God of hope—he has an inexhaustible supply of hope for you. Ask him for hope today. Choose hope today.