Hope Ignited

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We were saved to have this hope. If we can see what we are waiting for, that is not really hope. People don’t hope for something they already have. But we are hoping for something we don’t have yet, and we are waiting for it patiently.

Romans 8:24-25

Have you ever found yourself in a season of life that you thought might never end? You know, one of those seasons that is so mentally, emotionally and physically exhausting that you eventually get to the point of throwing your hands up, saying, “something’s got to give!” My family has been in one of those seasons for most of this past year. It felt a little like a rollercoaster, filled with never-ending ups and downs and unpredictable twists and turns. There were so many unknowns. As a mama, I don’t like the feeling that someone or something is messing with my kids. Yet, sometimes we find ourselves in circumstances that we are unable to control, no matter how hard we may try.

In September of last year (2022), our Able Moms Executive Team sat together in an Austin, TX hotel room during our annual planning retreat, and we set aside some time to pray and ask God what our 2023-2024 theme should be. Little did we know that when we unanimously agreed on Hope Ignited as our theme, we were all going to LIVE that in different ways throughout the coming year. You see, our annual theme isn’t just some trite phrase or something that makes for a cute logo. It is bathed in prayer; led by the Spirit. About a month after that retreat, something happened that shook my family to its core. We were catapulted into a season of waiting, hoping and trusting God, not knowing what the outcome of our situation might be.

Sometimes God takes us through seasons where we don’t know what’s going to happen. One night when our circumstance felt particularly intense, I cried out to God, “God, I don’t know how much longer I can do this. I know you’re working. I know you’re holding my family in your hands, but I am TIRED.” In that moment, it occurred to me that this season of my life was the same length of time as a pregnancy. It’s not uncommon during the final stages of labor for a mother to feel like she can’t go on, thinking, “It hurts too much. I’m too tired. I can’t do this anymore.” In childbirth, right at the moment that it seems the hardest and most painful, a beautiful new baby comes into the world. Oftentimes, when we reach the moment of thinking our situation can’t possibly get any worse, that’s when God shows up and begins to move mountains. That’s the moment that hope returns. Mama, I am here to tell you that there is nothing that ignites hope in your heart like seeing God work in your family in a powerful way!

Ecclesiastes 1:3-11 describes different seasons that we go through in life. As we navigate these different seasons, will we keep our eyes fixed on Jesus? How often do we walk through seasons of waiting with expectant hearts? In my situation, when I shifted my thinking from how tired and helpless I felt to being expectant of what God was going to do in our family, everything changed. That’s when the hope in my heart was ignited, and I knew the worst was over. Mama, if you find yourself in a season of waiting or unknowns today, I pray you look to Jesus as you wait expectantly for God to do a mighty work in your heart and in your family.

Jesus, thank you for meeting me in the waiting seasons. Even when it doesn’t seem like it,

I know that you ARE working. Help me to lean into the lessons you have for me

and to trust that you’ve got this situation and my family in your hands.

I ask that you ignite HOPE in my heart today. Amen.

Connect with Caitlin:

Email: caitlinh@ablemoms.org

Website: ablemoms.org

IG: @caitlinkropchuk

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