MONDAY

Colossians 1:21-23

• How does the gospel bring you hope?

“Hope” is the thing with feathers -

That perches in the soul -

And sings the tune without the words -

And never stops - at all –

Emily Dickinson

This poem means so much to me because I love the way Dickinson paints “hope” as a bird. Why? Birds fly. They soar above the chaos on the ground with a supreme perspective—a “bird’s eye view.” They see things differently than we do. Birds also have the capacity to be tender, sensitive, melodious—like the one in this poem. Both powerful and delicate, birds are the perfect personification of hope. Hope is both powerful and delicate. It is a strong engine that emboldens us. It is also a broken song that is barely audible at times, but still present.

Colossians promises that we’ve been “reconciled.” And because of that reconciliation through Jesus’ sacrifice, we’ve been redeemed and, therefore, have hope. So go about your day today with a bird perched on your shoulder, listening to the sweet song of hope.