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Lamentations 3:21-24 But this I call to mind, and therefore I have hope: The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. "The Lord is my portion," says my soul, "therefore I will hope in him.” (ESV)

- Hope is the CONFIDENT EXPECTATION of what God has promised.

Titus 2:11-13 For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation for all people, instructing us to deny godlessness and worldly lusts and to live in a sensible, righteous, and godly way in the present age, while we wait for the blessed hope, the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ (CSB)

- We all have misguided HOPES.

Jeremiah 17:5 Cursed is the man who trusts in man and makes flesh his strength, whose heart turns away from the Lord. (ESV)

Jeremiah 17:9 The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately sick; who can understand it? (ESV)

Luke 15:11-13 Jesus told them this story: “A man had two sons. The younger son told his father, ‘I want my share of your estate now before you die.’ So his father agreed to divide his wealth between his sons. “A few days later this younger son packed all his belongings and moved to a distant land, and there he wasted all his money in wild living. (NLT)

- Misguided hopes can bring unexpected PAIN.

Luke 15:15-16 He persuaded a local farmer to hire him, and the man sent him into his fields to feed the pigs. The young man became so hungry that even the pods he was feeding the pigs looked good to him. But no one gave him anything. (NLT)

- FEAR often keeps us in our pain.

Luke 1:30 And the angel said unto her, Fear not, Mary: for thou hast found favor with God. (KJV)

Romans 5:5 And this hope will not lead to disappointment. For we know how dearly God loves us, because he has given us the Holy Spirit to fill our hearts with his love. (NLT)

- The pain of your misguided hope will never OVERSHADOW Gods grace for your life.

Luke 15:20 “So he returned home to his father. And while he was still a long way off, his father saw him coming. Filled with love and compassion, he ran to his son, embraced him, and kissed him. (NLT)

1 Peter 1:3-4 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to His great mercy, He has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you (ESV)