Giving God Hope

Read: Genesis 1:26-27

God created humankind in his image, in the image of God he created them . . . (v. 27)

Perhaps God in whose image we are made is like us in some ways. Are there times when God, like us, needs a little hope?

A bus to the West Bank city of Ramallah passes by. By a window sits a little Palestinian girl watching me, and I catch her eye. She holds my eyes like a doctor seeing something that needs healing. Then she smiles and lifts her hand to give a tiny wave. I smile and wave back. Such a little thing, this little encounter, but it gave me, perhaps like God, a little hope on a day when I needed it.

I pray that God never loses hope. The Bible hints that God gets close at times. Think of God's despair in the Noah story: "I'm sorry I created them." Or Moses reminding God that this stiff-necked people are God's people and that God is not allowed to lose hope in them. Or Jesus on the cross begging the Father to forgive us, "for they know not what they do." Don't lose hope, Father.

A little girl, a little smile, and a little hope. Do a little thing today to give God a little hope.

Prayer: Lord, we pray that we might be a hopeful blessing to you and others in this day. Amen.

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