New and Renewed Hope

“…I have hope when I think of this:

The Lord’s love never ends; His mercies never stop.

They are new every morning; Lord, your loyalty is great.

I say to myself, “The Lord is mine, so I hope in him.”

Lamentations 3:22-24 ncv

New house, new neighbors, new city, new state, new church…new beginnings with renewed hope

In just a few hours, papers were signed, keys were handed over, and we packed, moved, and unpacked the sparse furnishings from our apartment into our new house.

Over the next couple of days, we wandered around our new, very off-white, mostly empty house and began to dream. We dreamed of ways to put our touch on this new place. We dreamed of the placement of our belongings. And I dreamed of how God would use me, us, and this house for His ministry.

But before we got too far into our dreaming, a neighbor stopped by.

“Hi, I’m Kristen. Welcome to the neighborhood.” She was a fit young, stay-at-home mom of two small children. With her 4-yr-old son leaning on her leg, she handed me a plate of goodies. “There’s a few of us that periodically have a girl’s night out, and I’d love for you to join us.”

I accepted the plate and said, “I’m thinking of having a Bible study in my home.”

Her face lit up with a familiar Christian-sister smile. “I know of a few women who would love that.”

New house—check. 

New neighbors—check. 

New ministry—check, check.

Starting over in a new city and state a thousand miles from all people and things familiar isn’t easy. In fact, it’s hard. It’s scary. It’s lonely.

But God, Jehovah, Yahweh is the same no matter where we go. His marvelous mercy, His tender compassion, His gentle grace—His Love is not only new and fresh every morning, but it is the same day-after-day no matter where we live, no matter the condition of our lives because He is Faithful and True.

I say to myself, “The Lord is mine, so I hope in him.”