Human beings can survive almost anything in life except the loss of hope. The definition that best describes what the Bible means by hope is this: “hope is always the expectation of something good” (Rihcards). In many ways, hope is inspired by our vision of the future. In August of 1963, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. stood in front of the Lincoln Memorial in Washington D.C. and opened his heart on what he saw for the future:“I have a dream that one day on the red hills of Georgia, the sons of former slaves and the sons of former slave owners will be able to sit down together at the table of brotherhood. I have a dream that one day even the state of Mississippi, a state sweltering with the heat of injustice, sweltering with the heat of oppression, will be transformed into an oasis of freedom and justice. I have a dream that my four little children will will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character…This is our hope. This is the faith that I go back to the South with.”
It can be said that a vision (or what we see) is “a compelling picture” of the “future that inspires” us to take action.” Hope and vision relate to the future, while faith keeps us strong in the present. We see this in the fact that:
1. Faith keeps us rooted in the unwavering conviction that God keeps His promises.
2. Faith keeps us rooted in the truth of three simple words: GOD IS ABLE!
The last part of Dr. King’s speech in Washington shows how faith works when he said:
"With this faith we will be able to hew out of the mountain of despair a stone of hope. With this faith we will be able to transform the jangling discords of our nation into a beautiful symphony of brotherhood. With this faith we will be able to work together, to pray together, to struggle together, to go to jail together, to stand up for freedom together, knowing that we will be free one day.”
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