prisoner of hope

I haven’t been able to get one little phrase out of my mind for the better part of a month now… 

prisoner of hope

Three little words nestled in the context of prophecy about the coming King. I read these words  so timely, at Christmastime. Prophetic words of the king coming lowly and riding on the donkey (Zechariah 9:9) fulfilled perfectly by Jesus Christ (Matthew 21:1-11). It’s been the perfect time to be captivated be these words.

Different translations provide different nuances to the phrase… prisoners who have the hope, prisoners who still have hope, prisoner of hope.

You see, there is a hope available that captivates, that holds us. To steady, to comfort. And even while we are trapped in things that are just flat out messed up, we can have hope. As God’s children we have a hope that is alive! A living hope for both right now and for the future (1 Peter 1).

A prisoner of hope.

In the moments of pain. In the moments of uprooting. In the moments of stripping away. In the moments of feeling trapped. In the moments when sudden tears spill out driving down the road. In the ache of what was, what could have been, what isn’t. Even when I don’t see a way… the reality is that I have hope. I don’t always choose it or feel like it. But I do. Hope is mine.

And all the while, the greater reality is that I am held captive by hope. Hope is holding me. Keeping me.

I have hope. And hope has me.

I am a prisoner of hope.