Leaning on a Spider’s Web

Hopelessness has become something of a national epidemic. As columnist Karol Markowicz wrote, “The economy is booming. Crime has fallen dramatically all over the country. We’re richer and safer than ever. Yet we’re in the middle of this terrible malaise.”

The Book of Job puts it this way: “The hopes of the godless evaporate. Their confidence hangs by a thread. They are leaning on a spider’s web.” (Job 8:13–14 NLT).

Have you ever leaned on a spider’s web? That is what it’s like to lean on this world. If you put your hope in the world, then your hope is misplaced. It won’t help you. It won’t solve your problems.

I believe there are three basic reasons people find themselves depressed: (1) they are depressed about their past, (2) they are depressed about their future, or (3) they are depressed about their present.

The good news is that Romans 8 gives us promises about our past, present, and future. Romans 8:1, for example, tells us there is no condemnation for our past. If you’re a Christian, then you’re a child of God. You’ve asked God to forgive you of your sin, He has forgiven you, and there’s no condemnation for you.

And Romans 8:38 tells us that as Christians, there is no separation from God in the future. So we don’t have to be afraid of our future. Then Romans 8:28 assures us that whatever we’re going through as children of God ultimately will work together for good.

Maybe you find yourself feeling anxious about your future. Or maybe you have a whopper of a problem that you’re dealing with at the moment. Then again, maybe you’ve done something that you wish you hadn’t done, and the ramifications are still part of your life today.

There’s still hope. Hope has a name, and it’s Jesus.