Anchors come in a variety of shapes and sizes; their designs determine how well they grip the ocean floor and the effectiveness of their resistance to the elements. They are essential for any vessel venturing away from shore and are mandatory for good reason. As in oceans and ships, so in life, anchors can save from disaster, protect from dangerous drift, stabilize in storms, and hold us fast when we are powerless.
Of course the anchors in daily life are not heavy metal contraptions we lug around, just in case. They are what we carry within our hearts and spirits providing strength from the inside out. Hope is one of the the most essential inner anchors, manifesting in various shapes and sizes. “You get what you pay for,” is a familiar saying. “Hope you’re doing well, stay strong, hope it works for you, never give up hope.” Hope is one of the most precious gifts known to humanity. Unfortunately, alongside anything of value are cheap counterfeits that will snap, melt, or buckle under pressure the first time they are deployed. The wrong kind of hope can become hopeless in the blink of an eye.
Easter is all about hope. It is the source of the finest gold, the most sparkling diamond, the priceless platinum rendition of hope as the ultimate anchor for life. The quality of hope is revealed in the testing.
I don’t know about you, but there have been times in my life where hope has been a distant dream, when most of my hopes seemed to be dashed on the rocks, shipwrecked for a myriad of reasons not always understood or foreseen. Plastic counterfeit hope can superficially satisfy when the sun shines, the ocean is calm, and the sails are full. But when storms and disappointments roll in I need something stronger than me, my gritted teeth, and my understanding, or lack thereof.
If we dare to believe in God there will come times when faith is stretched to breaking. The events around Easter include moments of miraculous revelation and soul-gutting despair. The disciples followed Jesus for three years with hope-beating-hearts like they’d never known. Within one week they moved from exhilaration; when Jesus was welcomed into Jerusalem with palm branches and the cries of Hosanna to the King, to jeers and taunts, “Crucify him!” They broke ranks, fled, watched from a distance, terrified, confused, and hopeless.
Jesus, hanging on the Cross, bloodied, crown of thorns, inexplicable pain, nails in feet and wrists, spat upon, abandoned. The greatest gift, God incarnate, in human form, rendered bloody and helpless, despised and rejected on a Cross. He had shared God’s love, healed the sick, challenged the religious hypocrites, refused to call Caesar ‘Lord’. There was no reward on earth, no popularity, no financial gain, no security, seemingly no fruit for all he had given. Despite the bleak circumstances his hope was anchored in the faithfulness of God, his Father. Physically, emotionally, and possibly spiritually destitute, Jesus gives evidence of his hope anchored beyond himself: “Father, forgive them, they know not what they do. Into your hands I commit my spirit.”
Three days later news of the resurrection begins to circulate. “Fake news!” Yet the evidence grows, the terrified disciples are transformed to courageous and bold. Five hundred people witness the risen Jesus. He appears in multiple situations, eating, speaking, commissioning, and encouraging. The hope that anchored him on the Cross is available to all. If the body was stolen why would the disciples risk their lives for a lie? Why didn’t the Romans, or religious leaders, reveal the body to quash the fake news?
This is where I go when my hope is dim and my faith is weak. The events of Easter and the historical evidence surrounding the miraculous, unfathomable circumstances of the week of Easter. The trauma of Good Friday, the agony of not knowing on Saturday, the unbelievable good news of Sunday. Only God could do this. It’s so unlikely, so unfathomable, so contrary to human thoughts and ways, so beyond me. I’m reminded of the disciples’ journey and Jesus compassionate response to the traumatized Peter when he appeared to him on Easter morning on the shores of Galilee.
Jesus knew Peter and he loved him in his weakness, his betrayal, his despair, and his uncertain return. He understood his beloved disciples and he understands you and me. He understands that our lives experiment with a variety of anchors that prove ineffective and disappointing. Until at last we find him, a place of shelter, a safe harbor, an anchor that will never move or let us go; no matter the storms, the wind, the lightning, or anything else. When I let go, he holds on. When I stop believing he continues to believe for me. When I am at my weakest, he is at his strongest, when I cannot see an inch ahead, he holds my hand and whispers, “Trust me, I’ve got this.”
The reason I believe in God is Jesus. My anchor in him has nothing to do with my ability to understand, my purity of life, my being good enough, or my having special favor. Truth is I am weak, ashamed of much, regret much, have failed often, not lived up to expectations, and deeply relate to those disciples running scared as Jesus was captured by the Romans. I have betrayed Jesus, sworn at him, rejected him, ignored him, been angry and fully of accusations, walked away whispering, “I had hoped” like the men on the Emmaus Road – dejected and confused after the crucifixion.
Despite all my rebellions Jesus has never abandoned me, while many others have. The events of Easter don’t end with despair. They climax radiantly in the resurrection, when God the Father raised his beloved Son, conquers death, and overcomes the worst atrocities humanity can mete out on another. In the mystery of the Spirit he has come to me again and again, offered me his love, offered me hope, offered me life flowing from forgiveness, offered me hope that passes all understanding and rational thinking.
It doesn’t make sense, and yet it does.
Easter is where my hope is anchored, how about you? Perhaps this Easter can be a reminder, a revelation, a first time safe harbor, an anchor of hope like no other, because of Jesus.
And then I discover I’m not alone. Others who have gone before me for over a thousand years testify to the same truth. I tug on my anchor and it proves to be strong and timeless, thanks be to God.
Isaiah 40:31 ~ But they who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint.
Jeremiah 29:11 ~ For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope.
Romans 8:24-25 ~ For in this hope we were saved. Now hope that is seen is not hope. For who hopes for what he sees? But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait for it with patience.
Romans 15:13 ~ May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope.
Romans 12:12 ~ Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer.
Hebrews 11:1 ~ Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.
1 Peter 1:3 ~ 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.
Albert Einstein: Learn from yesterday, live for today, hope for tomorrow. The important thing is not to stop questioning.
Desmond Tutu: Hope is being able to see that there is light despite all of the darkness.
Billy Graham: God’s mercy and grace give me hope – for myself, and for our world.
Poem by Mizuta Masahide: “Barn’s burnt down — Now I can see the moon.”
Unknown: “The sun never quits shining. Sometimes, clouds just get in the way.”
Ralph Abernathy: “I don’t know what the future may hold, but I know who holds the future.”
Unknown: In the dark dreary nights, when the storm is at its most fierce, the lighthouse burns bright so the sailors can find their way home again. In life the same light burns. This light is fueled with love, faith, and hope. And through life’s most fierce storms these three burn their brightest so we also can find our way home again.
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