Painted Faces - the masks people wear

But there is hope...

Hope: where is your hope?

Tell them I am their hope

You, like me, may have been hurt. Abused. Lied to and manipulated. Abandoned and rejected.

We have discussed the need to forgive all who have done this to us and why this is so important for our healing and future.

   But what about hope? Where do you find yours – or do you in fact have no hope? Many times, I have felt completely "hope-less" – my heart and mouth have cried out in desperation for my life to end. But even in that I had no hope. My spirit knew that death (or escape) in this way would only bring everlasting pain as I was separated from Jesus and the ones I love. So, in a very real way all hope fled from me. I felt completely trapped with no escape. At times I would scream out to God in my anguish and yet feel unheard. Thoughts of suicide flooded my mind but although I came close something always stopped me in my tracks. I did not always recognise it, but my Abba was stepping in to protect me. He would tell people to call me or come round at just the crucial point. Or He would stay my hand. As in Psalm 91:11, He would "command his angels concerning me to guard me in all my ways; to lift me up in their hands, so that I will not strike my foot against a stone." I was no less intentional in my desire to die than others who have succeeded, except for the Holy Spirit who lives in me. The saving grace of our Lord Jesus.

So I say to you again: where is your hope?

    Taking your life because hope has died in your heart cannot be the answer. Psalm 23 reminds us that though we walk through the valley of death, we are not alone: verse 4 says "Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me". Bad things happen; heartbreak happens. We are nothing without hope. And our hope is in Him. It must be! For there is nothing else that truly helps.

Let's look at what Abba says about hope.

Proverbs 23:18 says: "There is surely a future hope for you, and your hope will not be cut off."

   In spite of everything looking bleak, desperate and "hope-less" we are told that we surely (the Oxford dictionary tells us that "surely" expresses the writer's firm belief that this is true and their surprise that you would doubt it; surely could also be replaced with "without question") have future hope. And more than that, that this hope will not be cut off. Claim this verse! Your Abba promises that your hope will not be cut off or removed. Persevere through your time of desperation and you will live to see hope again. At times I would hide inside myself, keeping perfectly still, because my fear was that if I moved I would do something to harm myself. Waves of panic would wash over me but I hid and trusted my Abba to bring me through. He always did.

We can put our hope in friends, loved ones, professionals, but ultimately our hope is – and must be – Jesus.

He died on that cross to take all our pain so that we might have His freedom.

He died on a cross in Calvary so that we might have His hope.

He died on that cross 2000 years ago so that we can live.

And live in abundance. So that we can be overcomers, free from fear, free from sin and death.

    In this book I have given account of some of what happened to me while trapped with those men. I have shared my trauma, both then and now, in the hope that you too will see that Jesus came to set us free.

That He walks with us in our trauma and never leaves us alone.

That we need have no desire for revenge or human justice because God will judge them more fairly than we or any human court ever could.

He releases us from that burden so that we may fly free at last. We can never "make things right" the way Jesus can. Restoration and healing is in His power and gift alone. It can be hard to "let go" but let go we must. Don't be deceived into thinking that a court sentence will heal you. It won't. Only the power of God can do that.

   I have realised that although I have never felt anger towards those men, or wanted them to "pay", I have felt it towards myself. It was my fault. Something about me made them do it. It happened too many times in my life on separate occasions with different people for that not to be the case. I was the guilty one. Even remembering in flashbacks and visions made me feel guilty – in case it wasn't real and didn't actually happen. And yes, I still feel that way at times – until I remember to hand it back to Jesus. I still suffer bouts of anxiety and depression, ache for "things to be different".

But God. 

He knows the plans He has for me, and that they are plans for good, not evil (Jeremiah 29:11). I just need to press on, choose to trust Him and place my hope in Him. In John 16:33 He reminds us: "I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world." He has overcome the world – we don't need to! It is not asked of us or even possible for us to do. Try, and we will surely mess up! Allow Jesus to do it for you – can you see He wants to? He wants to be your protector. Your champion. Your redeemer.

As Abba reminds me and asks me to tell you – He is our hope.

He alone is our hope.

We can trust Him.

We can trust Him with our hope.

He takes great interest in all we are, all we do. He holds us in the palm of His hand.

And won't let us fall - if we trust Him and see our hope is Him.

He alone will never let us down.

He doesn't change and is everlasting.

John 7:37 says "If anyone is thirsty, let him come to me and drink. Whoever believes in me as the Scripture has said, streams of living water will flow from within him. By this he meant the Spirit, whom those who believed in him were later to receive."

We have the Holy Spirit in us, if we give our lives to Jesus, cheering us on from the inside out! Offering us and reminding us of the hope we have in Jesus. Hope that may seem far off and unlikely. But hope that is real and is ours.

Yours.

Wherever you may be and whatever your circumstances are right now.

Whatever has happened to you and however much it still hurts.

Whatever your emotions are telling you and however alone you might feel.

Will you open your heart and place your hope where it belongs and lives – in Jesus?

He will not fail you or leave you to struggle alone. 

I leave you with promises from Jesus, made for you and me, to give us hope:

Isaiah 40:31 "But those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary; they will walk and not be faint."

Deuteronomy 31:6 "Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them, for the Lord your God goes with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you."

Psalm 62:5-6 "Yes, my soul, find rest in God; my hope comes from him. Truly he is my rock and my salvation; he is my fortress; I will not be shaken."

Romans 15:13 "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."

Jeremiah 17:7 "But blessed is the one who trusts in the Lord, whose confidence is in him."

Psalm 147:11 "The Lord delights in those who fear him, who put their hope in his unfailing love."

2 Corinthians 4:18 "So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal."

John 14:27 "Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid."