I Will Hope Continually

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Hope Continually
This is an excerpt from a Prayer for the New Year by Dr. Billy Graham fom 2008. His prayer is still so very relevant to the upcoming year of 2016: " We each have our hopes and expectations for the year that is ahead of us—but You alone know what it holds for us, and only You can give us the strength and the wisdom we will need to meet its challenges. So help us to humbly put our hands into Your hand, and to trust You and to seek Your will for our lives during this coming year."  To read this prayer in its entirety you can go here to read his stirring and poignant words. 

Summer Magic is an old Disney movie . The movie, in my opinion, has a great sound track, with some beautiful singing by Burl Ives, the color is gorgeous and it has a cast of outstanding actors. The story line of the movie evolves around a Widow named Mrs. Carey and her children. The family has fallen on hard times after the untimely demise of Mr. Carey. They find themselves living in a wonderful old yellow Victorian house, all thanks to daughter Nancy Carey's creative and colorful (if not totally truthful) letter sent to Mr. Osh Popham, manager of the property on which the yellow house sits.

A favorite scene from the  movie concerns the hopeful nature of  Osh Popham, a kind-hearted, generous and optimistic man, unlike his down-in-the-mouth wife, Mariah Popham. In the scene I refer to, the perpetually pessimistic, Mariah Popham (played by Una Merkel) is speaking to the optimistic little Miss Nancy Carey (played by Hayley Mills) about her ever hopeful husband, Osh Popham (played by Burl Ives).You can go here if you would like to read the quotes from this scene. Nancy Carey says something like this: "We all believe in silver linings and rainbows..." To which Mariah responds: "Well, I don't! I expect the worst and I ain't never been disappointed!"


What are your plans and aspirations for the upcoming year? Have you made a list of New Year's Resolutions which you may or may not be able to accomplish? Do you feel optimistic about the upcoming year or do you see only dark clouds in the future?

Our son-in-law, Jason,s message this past Sunday at Darien Baptist Church concerning the New Year was taken from the the Holy Bible in The Book of Psalms: Chapter 71. This chapter focuses on the fact that we can have continual hope in the Lord our God at all times. My King James version refers to the writer's hope in Psalm 71:5 which states "For thou art my hope, O Lord God: thou art my trust from my youth." The psalmist is filled with hope that God will provide strength and security during times of adversity and uncertainty. He again declares in Psalm 71:14 "But I will hope continually, and will yet praise thee more and more."

Things will not be all sunshine and roses in 2016. There will be some dark clouds. It may not be easy to stay optimistic and things may sometimes seem hopeless. But there is surely hope. My faith tells me this.

I have not set any resolutions but, yes, I have a couple of goals that I hope to accomplish in 2016.When times in life and in our world are  hard and stumbling blocks get in my way, I will strive to remember that my faith tells me to trust that God will be my strength in all situations and I will hope in Him continually, and I will yet praise Him more and more!

I wish you all a New Year of happiness and a year filled with hope!

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