Our God is the God of hope. Life is hard. Life can be frustrating. Life can be good. Life can be fun. Life is life. Life can be filled with times of pain and heartache that are accented by times of great joy and laughter. If you do not seize the day and make the most of it, it becomes a life of drudgery. I believe that there is only one person, that can turn drudgery, into joy and that is the LORD God Almighty. In Nehemiah 8:10 it says, “Do not grieve, for the joy of the LORD is your strength.” Drudgery causes us to look back at our lives, seeing the pain and ugliness of it. When we keep our eyes focused upon God, we do not spiral out of control, into self-despair and self-pity. With our eyes focused on our LORD, no matter what life throws our way, we know that God is with us, so how can we fail. For when we are down, the LORD lifts us up. When we are weary, God picks us up. When self-pity consumes us, our God carries us. Psalm 40 reminds us, “I waited patiently for the LORD, he turned to me and heard my cry. He lifted me from the slimy pit, out of the mud and mire. He set my feet on a rock and gave me a firm place to stand. He put a new song in my mouth, a hymn of praise to our God.” Our God is the God of hope. He meets our every need, if we let Him. God Bless. Amen.