Hebrews 10:19-25 | What is the lesson for me today?

I have a confession to make. I have a hard time holding on to hope. I have been developed in a very pessimistic worldview. Growing up, we had a phrase that my family would bring up any time something mildly inconvenient or seriously rough would happen. "It's just Matus luck." Matus luck was the way we would represent this imaginary curse upon us that would say, "If it could go wrong, it will." The unfortunate part about this "curse" is that we seemed to be right. Praise the Lord for my wife who called out how much I leaned on this. It sounded like I had more faith in Matus luck than I did in Christ's blessings. While the language shifted away from that, the core of the belief system has had to undergo multiple challenges. Even still, it is difficult for me to overcome.

I recently listened to a teaching that went through the sermon on the mount. The teacher sat on one particular passage that I want to share with you now.

22  “The lamp of the body is the eye. If therefore your eye is good, your whole body will be full of light. 23 But if your eye is bad, your whole body will be full of darkness. If therefore the light that is in you is darkness, how great is that darkness!
-Matthew 6:22-23

Having emphasized through the sermon on the mount how Jesus is teaching in such a way that our character would be shaped, the teacher stopped on this passage to reinforce that your character changes your perspective. If you, being in Christ Jesus, are supposed to be filled with hope, but instead you're filled with pessimism and despair, how great is that darkness in you? This teaching has continuously challenged me to challenge my perspective and hold fast to hope.

As I look at the passage in Hebrews, the challenge comes to life even more. We are to hold fast the hope of our confession knowing that God is faithful. If I lack hope, do I also then lack the faith to believe in His faithfulness? Or do I believe that I remain unclean despite the work of Jesus? The lesson today is one that causes me to stop and reflect. How can I press into holding fast to hope? Let us dwell on that today.

What lesson are you taking from today's reading?