Written this month by Ken Smith the Lay Elder at Hinderclay

I love Spring! Not only because it comes on the heels of the season I dislike the most, but because of all the things it represents – renewal, growth, new life, and hope. I recently came across the Hebrew word ‘Tikvah’ and that word stuck in my memory. The word is a powerful reference to God’s promise of hope in the midst of adversity or in seemingly impossible situations.

It seems to me as we look around us at the moment, both here and throughout the world, we need that sort of hope. Tikvah is not meant to convey just a feeling of the sort of hope that something good might happen. This hope implies that we actually have the expectation that our hope will result in something positive. The Hebrew definition of “Tikvah” sometimes uses the example of a woven cord, rope or thread which means it is also something strong you can grab hold of and rely upon. There are times when we all need something to cling onto. Hope can become so real to us that we can mentally cling onto it as if it were a rope. This means that we can find some peace as we believe that what we hope for is not out of our reach.

The example of ‘hope’ (Tikvah) was referred to in Joshua’s account of the two Israelite spies and the woman Rahab of Jericho. Rahab tied the scarlet cord in the window. Now while this is the literal Tikvah a “cord or thread,” it also gives us the figurative picture of Hope. The red cord was Rahab’s hope. It was her only guarantee that her household would be spared by the Israelites but Rahab still hadto wait for the realisation of the spies’ promise. We often forget that hope is rooted in waiting. Being patient and waiting for an anticipated event or outcome is very difficult for the majority of us.

What is your hope? We are all hoping for something. So, let us hold on to that ‘cord’ of hope. Remember that the bible is full of examples of hope – Hannah’s hope for her son, Job’s hope through hardship – there are countless other examples. Of course, the reality is that our hopes will not always be fulfilled – at least not in the way we expected. Let us be encouraged as we wait and believe that even if it is not so, God has something better in store for us and let us look with faith to the future. In a way it’s just like when winter moves into spring, something greater is ahead.

God Bless, Ken