²¹Yet I still dare to hope when I remember this:

Lamentations 3:21

Jeremiah, a prophet to the southern kingdom of Israel before they were taken captive by Babylon, warned the people of Israel what would happen if they didn’t surrender to Babylon. The king, Zedekiah, didn’t listen and the people of Jerusalem suffered needlessly.

Lamentations is written after the people have gone into exile. It highlights some of the really horrible suffering the people endured. In spite of the terrible suffering, Jeremiah says he still had hope! How? What was he remembering that incited hope?

²²The faithful love of the Lord never ends! His mercies never cease. ²³Great is his faithfulness; his mercies begin afresh each morning. ²⁴I say to myself, “The Lord is my inheritance; therefore, I will hope in him!” ²⁵The Lord is good to those who depend on him, to those who search for him. ²⁶So it is good to wait quietly for salvation from the Lord.

Lamentations 3:22-26

I find six attributes of God in this short passage that inspire hope!

1. His love never ends.
2. His mercies never cease.
3. His faithfulness is great.
4. His mercies are new every morning.
5. He is my inheritance.
6. He is good to me.

I also note three positive actions necessary to experience this hope.

1. “I say to myself” – positive self-talk is absolutely imperative
2. I must search for and depend on him – look for his presence around me.
3. It is good to wait quietly – pause, listen, notice.

I don’t know about you, but I haven’t experienced the atrocities the people of Judah did in captivity. And yet, I find that my hope waxes and wanes. I need this reminder that my hope can be alive and active in spite of the difficulty of life.

So, remember this…