This editorial column by Dusty Takle was published in the most recent print edition of The GRIP.
The word hope has come alive for me.
Amidst the tragedies and heartbreaks we’ve all experienced this year in our nation, hope is something we all need to renew. Mass shootings make us cry out for peace and hope.
Losing someone dear to us stirs up our need for hope. The new statistic telling us that one in 10 teens will commit suicide urges us to cry out for a word like hope.
Hebrews 6:19 says, “We have this hope as an anchor for the soul, firm and secure.”
Real hope – this living, breathing, life-giving, powerful force – anchors us. It means that when winds and currents come, we remain strong and secure, but only we can activate this kind of hope in our lives, and for those of us who understand it and grasp it, it is our job, our mission, to do all we can to make this kind of hope come alive for those who don’t.
I recently picked up John Eldredge’s new book, “All Things New.” The word “new” is what grabbed my attention.
This year has been both wonderful and heart-wrenching for me. The year began with us losing my grandmother, the very heart of our family, and the year’s end brought the loss of a dear family friend.
I’ve also watched one of my best friends walk through her son enduring an accident in which had the potential to cost him the complete loss of his sight. He is still working to fully recover and see again. I’ve been surrounded by marriages who have gone through a hard year. So, when I saw the word “new,” I thought, heck yeah.
We all need something new. A new day, a new year, a new hope. As I began to turn the pages of this book, it wasn’t so much the word new that was jumping off the pages. It was the word hope. A hope that all things are being made new.
There are three kinds of hope. There are our little hopes. “I hope I do well on this test.” “I hope our flight is on time.” “I hope we aren’t late.” These are normal hopes that are just a part of daily life, and there is nothing wrong with these little hopes.
The next level of hope is a precious hope. “I hope this pregnancy goes well.” “I hope he is able to beat this cancer.” “I hope my marriage can survive this.” Precious hopes matter. Again, these are very normal.
Then, though, then there is a supreme, eternal hope. This is where our hope is in the One who says, “I make all things new.”
Our hope is in the promises of a God who says I will never leave you or forsake you. I will go with you until the end. Our hope is in the One where no matter how great our loss is….no matter how broken our hearts are….no matter what tragedy we walk out….He promises that nothing is ever truly lost, because this eternal, supreme hope says it will one day all be restored, all be renewed, all be made right.
The ultimate, highest level of hope is a hope that is anchored in Him, in His promises, and in his extravagant love for us.
People who commit suicide have made their precious hopes become their eternal, supreme hopes, so when they are hurting, they struggle to grasp this real, enduring hope that holds them firm and secure no matter what comes their way. A hope that anchors them in knowing that God makes all things new.
The scriptures tells us that of faith, hope and love, the greatest of these is love. While this is true, love cannot be felt without hope in the present.
Faith cannot be activated without hope for the future. Hope is what makes love and faith possible. Hope is everything.
If you’re reading this and are struggling to hope, I beg you to position yourself around people who have it. Keep pushing, keep seeking, keep digging until it becomes alive for you.
If you’re reading this and you get it, then go be hope to others. Get uncomfortable. Give your time, your energy, all that you are to make hope come alive for someone else. What the world needs now is hope. “Hope smiles from the threshold of the year to come, whispering, ‘it will be happier.’” (Tennyson)
The best is yet to come, friends.
This is the hope we have.
Firm and secure.
The GRIP 
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