Does hope come and go?

“For these things I weep; my eyes flow with tears; for a comforter is far from me, one to revive my spirit; my children are desolate, for the enemy has prevailed.” (Lamentations 1:16) 

The prophet hears the words of God. He also feels the heart of God: 

The Lord determined to lay in ruins the wall of the daughter of Zion; he stretched out the measuring line; he did not restrain his hand from destroying; he caused rampart and wall to lament; they languished together. Her gates have sunk into the ground; he has ruined and broken her bars; her king and princes are among the nations; the law is no more, and her prophets find no vision from the Lord. The elders of the daughter of Zion sit on the ground in silence; they have thrown dust on their heads and put on sackcloth; the young women of Jerusalem have bowed their heads to the ground. My eyes are spent with weeping; my stomach churns; my bile is poured out to the ground because of the destruction of the daughter of my people, because infants and babies faint in the streets of the city. (Lamentations 2:8–11) 

Despite the hope passage I read yesterday, the scenes before Jeremiah are too much for him. He wants a visible solution:

He has walled me about so that I cannot escape; he has made my chains heavy; though I call and cry for help, he shuts out my prayer; he has blocked my ways with blocks of stones; he has made my paths crooked. (Lamentations 3:7–9)

I can relate to this. The Lord encourages me that He will answer my prayer, but He does not say when, and like most people, NOW is the time I have in mind. The NT describes it: “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 8:24–25)

Jeremiah must have had similar thoughts too, for he says the same thing:

But this I call to mind, and therefore I have hope: The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. “The Lord is my portion,” says my soul, “therefore I will hope in him.” The Lord is good to those who wait for him, to the soul who seeks him. It is good that one should wait quietly for the salvation of the Lord. (Lamentations 3:21–26)

The prophet is strong in knowing the will of God but just like most of us, hope wavers now and then into “I want to see it now” and our trust begins to waver. I need to remember my hope is based on God's promises, not on what I can see.

For the Lord will not cast off forever, for, though he cause grief, he will have compassion according to the abundance of his steadfast love; for he does not afflict from his heart or grieve the children of men. (Lamentations 3:31–33)

Jeremiah wrote Lamentations, maybe to express his grief and impatience as his hope ebbs and dwindles. He asks big questions about the way God’s people have been left in captivity, yet he clings to the only One who can do anything about it. I feel like this at times too, wondering if my hope is only my hope and not from Him. Yet I can pray as he does:

But you, O Lord, reign forever; your throne endures to all generations. Why do you forget us forever, why do you forsake us for so many days? Restore us to yourself, O Lord, that we may be restored! Renew our days as of old— unless you have utterly rejected us, and you remain exceedingly angry with us. (Lamentations 5:19–22)

I need to always remember what God has done about my sin and lack of faith. He poured out His punishment on You, Jesus. For that, my hope is secure until I am face to face with You.