Thankful for Hope (13/1000)

This afternoon I had the privilege of supporting Karen Mehta as she led an afternoon of Remembrance for the Twins and Multiple Birth Bereavement Support Group. These myriad of families are separated by age, race, distance and yet united by experience of loss gather to remember, to support and to encourage each other, and there are tears and laughter mixing pain with hope.

And it's the hope that for me is key, I don't think that anyone goes through life with out pain. The pain of loss, the pain of disappointment. As a parent the pain of seeing my children hurt, whether as a result of their own or others actions can quite simply hit me to my core and is where so much of my pain lies currently.

The dictionary defines hope as feeling of expectation and desire for a particular thing to happen and in our worldly lives hope is often described as being clung onto, but for me hope is so much more, its more than a feeling or a desire, it fact it's more like knowledge.

I do not cling onto hope, but rather I am enveloped by hope, because my hope is based not upon any earthly thing or person that is that is fallible, my hope is based on Gods promises that I know are steadfast, I know that they are unchanging,

So when the pain of being a mum to a hurting child threatens to overwhelm me, that knot in my stomach, the ache in my heart become so tangible I catch my breath, I remind my of Gods promise in Jeremiah 29:11 "For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." and I know that that promise extends to my children and I allow myself a hope hug....so today I am thankful for hope.....