Why You Can Hold On to Hope . . . No Matter What?

Have you ever been chasing a dream God gave you, only to suddenly find yourself at a dead end? If you have, you are in good company! The Bible is full of people who reached a dead end—and then found God there to deliver them.

But how do you know you’re at a dead end? You’re at a dead end when the situation deteriorates from difficult to impossible—when it’s hopeless, when there’s no way out, when you have no alternatives left.

Abraham was at a dead end when he and his wife were approaching 100 years old and still hadn’t had the baby God promised them (Genesis 18:10–14). The Israelites were at a dead end when the Red Sea was in front of them and the armies of Pharaoh were behind them (Exodus 14). Jesus’ followers were at a dead end when he died on the cross (Luke 24:17; John 20:11).

When you reach a dead end, you start asking things like, “What’s going on here, God? Did I miss your plan? Is this just something I thought up myself, and not your dream?”

Even the apostle Paul faced dead ends: “At that time we were completely overwhelmed, the burden was more than we could bear, in fact we told ourselves that this was the end. Yet we believe now that we had this experience of coming to the end of our tether that we might learn to trust, not in ourselves, but in God who can raise the dead” (2 Corinthians 1:8–9 PHILLIPS).

Paul knew this: If God can raise people who are dead physically, he can raise people who are dead emotionally. He can resurrect a dead marriage. He can resurrect a dead career. He can resurrect a health problem and make it better.

If God can raise the dead, he can do anything.

During my years pastoring Saddleback Church, we found ourselves at many dead ends. We lost money and opportunities; for many years, we moved from place to place, meeting in 57 different locations over the years. But all of those dead ends were part of God’s plan—and every time he delivered us.

If you are at a dead end, you are exactly where God wants you to be. God knows where you are. He knows every hair on your head. He has you in that dead end for a purpose.

What’s the best response to a dead end? Follow the example of Paul and wait confidently on God for deliverance: “He has delivered us . . . and he will deliver us gain” (2 Corinthians 1:10 NIV).

You can trust that, at the end, God comes in and delivers. He provides a solution. He does a miracle. In Moses’s case, God split the Red Sea. Abraham and Sarah miraculously conceived. And Jesus was resurrected.

Remember what God has done . . . and believe he will do it again. Hold onto hope. Deliverance is coming.