am having a late night chat with Jackie Smith-Bell and we are going to be talking about “Hope When Seasons Are Hard.” Now, before we get started, I want to let you know that Jackie is a lover of Jesus Christ, wife, mother, and grandmother. She is also a writer, speaker, and cultivator of the Word of God. She is passionate about encouraging  women to fulfill their full potential in Christ, while applying His truths to their everyday living.

 

Courtnaye – Hello Jackie, how are you? 

 

Jackie – I'm doing well Courtnaye, how are you?

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Courtnaye - I am good! Alright, let's go ahead and dive right in. Jackie, how often have you taken hard seasons of change into your own hands?

 

Jackie – I can’t tell you how many times I’ve taken things into my own hands. I think this happens a lot, especially as mothers. We tend to be helicopter moms in control of everything and out of control with anything that takes a lot of strength. But when we look at the Word of God, it tells us that we can do all things through Christ who strengthens us.  

 

Courtnaye – So true! He is our strength. Let's talk about hope. So, how do we continue to have hope when there is no evidence of change in difficult seasons? 

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Jackie – In Him is where we place our hope, not in the situation that’s hard on us. Our hope has to be placed in the One who cannot fail. In Corinthians 4:17, it tells us that our trials are temporal. We also have to know that the God that we serve is stronger than the trials that we’re in. So we have to trust Him. That’s how I hang onto hope in hopeless situations or hard seasons. 

 

Courtnaye – This is so good! We can totally grow and glean from this. So how did you learn that your disappointments in life weren’t going to disable the plans of God or what He had in store for you? 

 

Jackie – Most of all, I had to understand that the plans of God cannot be thwarted. Nothing can stop God’s plans. I was just disappointed, today. But even in that, it did not downsize the authority of God in my life. You see, we have to cling to God who is our hope and refuge. Even a bad situation can morph into something good because it’s in the Master’s hand. He is the One who is shaping our future. 

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Courtnaye – Right. He holds the plans in His hands. Amen. Let's talk a little bit about remaining hopeful and being patient while under trial. Can you expound on this for a moment? 

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Jackie – More often, I think we lose hope because we’re impatient. We begin to think that it’s impossible for God to fix the situations that we’re in. But we’re not giving God time to succeed, because we want a “right now solution.” Our hope should be trusting that God will succeed, not that He will give us the solution in the way that we desire it, but that we trust Him with succeeding with His desires. 

 

Courtnaye – Oh my gosh! That is a good nugget! My next question is what Bible verse has helped you to keep hope alive?  

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Jackie – There are so many, but Jeremiah 17:7 says, “Blessed are those who trust in the Lord and who have made the Lord their hope and confidence.” This is a Scripture that I anchor and arm myself with whenever I’m going through a hard season. Because anytime we’re going through a trial, we have to anchor ourselves to the truth of God’s Word. The only way we can do this is if we have confidence in it. And as long as we make the Lord our hope, we have a future that’s planned by Him and it’s good for us. 

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Courtnaye – Let’s feast upon this Word. Yes! I actually have this verse on my wall in my hallway. It gives me strength. Jackie, could you give a word of encouragement to the readers and listeners who are in need of hope in this season? 

 

Jackie – Yes. My word of encouragement is that we have to trust God even when we can’t trace His hand. Trust God more than you trust yourself and others, because even though seasons change, He will not. According to Romans 8:28, it says,“He will work all things out for our good.” And that doesn’t mean that it will always feel good, but we serve a good God and He cannot lie. Things will work out.  

 

Courtnaye – What a close! I absolutely love this! We just have to keep our faith, hope, and trust in Him. Awesome! Thank you so much, Jackie. Before we go, how can we connect with you online and if someone wanted to book you to speak, how can he or she get in touch with you?

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Jackie – Yes ma’am. My website is www.jackiesmithbell.com. I am also on Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube as Jackie Smith-Bell. 

 

Courtnaye – Awesome! Connect, connect! I so appreciate you for sharing with us, Jackie!