Hope is contagious. When we’re promised great things we’re filled with expectation that something incredible is going to happen. True hope cannot be stopped, and it cannot be contained. 

When our hope in God’s promises determines our actions, faith grows. Hebrews 11:1 describes faith as “confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see.”

At times, we feel the uncertainty of uneven, rocky roads. We may even feel like we’re on a journey that seems impossible. Hope is what allows us to persevere through the fear and the pain. And hope is more powerful than any uphill journey we face today. 

This Week in Native American News (5/17/19): the Effects of Trauma, a Native National Park, and Not Removing Murals

 “It was very dark around the campus that day.”

The word spread across the Haskell Indian Nations University campus – a student had taken their own life. The story was heart-wrenching. Another young person lost to the despair, anger, and hopelessness that is always lurking in the shadows of Native lives.

Like the writer of Lamentations, we can look back at all God has done for us in the past and take hope in knowing that God won’t give up on us now. “[The Lord’s] compassions never fail. They are new every morning...” (Lamentations 3:22-23)  We aren’t just optimistic that the best is yet to come. Like Mary, we can have hope that the best is yet to come because our God says it is, and He always keeps His word. 

Joseph risked his reputation. The disciples risked their lives. In return, they had the privilege of knowing Jesus while he lived on this earth, and their character—the very thing people questioned during their lifetimes—is celebrated in the Bible and became an example for generations to come.

This Week in Native American News (5/3/19): Cancer "Angels," the Savannah Act, Alaska Native Poets, and an Amazing Version of the Beatles' "Blackbird"

This Week in Native American News (4/26/19): Running Boston, Wearing Masks, and Searching History