Do Not Lose Heart

Do Not Lose Heart

"Just a little over two years ago, my husband received a crushing phone call. His dad, Joe, had been diagnosed with the more aggressive onset of ALS (Lou Gehrig's disease), and would only have 12-18 months to live. This disease, made famous by the "Ice Bucket Challenge," has no cure and there is no real way to fight it. Your brain stops sending signals to your muscles - even to the involuntary muscles that you use to swallow and breathe. Slowly, your body deteriorates, and you lose the ability to walk, talk, stand, and eat. We were devastated.

On the surface, there is no real hope here: no hope of "overcoming the odds" or getting treatment or fighting the disease. And yet, the Bible says there is a hope. As we looked ahead to the suffering we knew his dad would face, and as I searched scripture for what comfort Joe might have in this hopeless situation, this song began to form.

Based on Romans 8 and 2 Corinthians 4, "Do Not Lose Heart" speaks about the eternal, unwavering hope we have, even in the most difficult of trials. It is a hope achieved for us by Jesus's death on the cross and victorious resurrection. We do not lose heart, even when our flesh fails and we grow weary with suffering, because we know Jesus has conquered death and is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all compare. As believers, we have a living, eternal hope that does not change when our circumstances change. This was a truth that sustained Joe until his last day. We lost him just this past April, and we grieve his absence every day. But because Jesus is risen and alive, we do not grieve as those who have no hope. One day, He will return and even death, that last enemy, will be soundly defeated. Come, Lord Jesus, come." (Caroline Cobb)

DO NOT LOSE HEART
Written by Caroline Cobb Smith (ASCAP)
© 2017 Common Hymnal Publishing (ASCAP), Sing The Story Music (ASCAP) (admin by IntegratedRights.com). CCLI 7108470.

VERSE 1
Though outwardly we waste away
Our flesh and foe assail us
Though we grow weary on the way
The promise will not fail us
We feel the ache, our spirits groan
We long for full redemption
When God will bring his children home
Forever to be with him

CHORUS
Do not lose heart, our hope is stronger
Jesus is risen up
Do not lose heart, our king has conquered
And he will overcome
(So we will overcome)

VERSE 2
Though suffering is long and hard
It’s only momentary
Compared to heaven’s great reward
Eternal weight of glory
We fix our eyes upon the cross
Where he endured our shame
We hold to love that can’t be lost
And joy that will not fade

BRIDGE
Bought with the blood, sealed by the Spirit
When the storm rises, we will not fear it
Beloved children, heirs of the father
He is our trust, our hope is stronger