Abounding in Hope

“Now the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, that ye may abound in hope, through the power of the Holy Ghost” (Romans 15:13).

 

Has life ever felt without hope? Perhaps you woke this morning struggling with feelings of hopelessness. There is a way out. It sounds simplistic, but our hope comes from God.

Job experienced deep despair when he lost his possessions, his children, and his health in just a short span of time. He cried out, “My days are swifter than a weaver’s shuttle, and are spent without hope” (Job 7:6). His wife could see no way through these calamities and advised him to just “curse God, and die” (2:9). Somehow, despite his questions about God, the pessimism of his wife, and the stinging accusations of his friends, Job found a glimmer of hope in his dark night. Eventually he could declare, “When he hath tried me, I shall come forth as gold” (23:10). “Till I die I will not remove mine integrity from me” (27:5).

Hope speaks of anticipation and of confidence that something longed for will come to pass.

Many find life unbearable and lose hope. Yet we can always have hope in this life. Always!

Hope embodies expectation. It means more than just a dream or vague desire; it creates anticipation. Hope looks beyond the visible to the unseen eternal. Second Corinthians 4:18 explains it this way:

 

“Because we are not looking at what can be seen but at what cannot be seen. For what can be seen is temporary, but what cannot be seen is eternal” (New English Translation).

 

Scripture assures us that the way out of defeat and despair is through the Spirit of God working in our life. We were once “strangers . . . having no hope, and without God” but now we “are no more strangers and foreigners, but fellow citizens with the saints” (Ephesians 2:12, 19). Romans 15:13 says that we will “abound in hope.” Abounding speaks of thriving, abundance, an overflowing wave. All we must do is tap into the power source, His Spirit, to receive more than we ever imagined.

Does this mean if we are filled with God’s Spirit we will not face dark times? No. It does mean we can maintain our integrity during difficult situations and come out as gold. Paul describes it this way:

 

“We are troubled on every side, yet not distressed; we are perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not forsaken; cast down, but not destroyed.”

 

He continues that “the inward man is renewed day by day” and our “light affliction” is just for a moment. (Read II Corinthians 4:8-18.)

Be assured. There is hope in your situation. God is with you.

 

Prayer: Thank You, Lord for the eternal hope I have through You. You are there to help me through the dark times when all hope seems gone. But with You always by me, and Your Spirit working inside me, I will always have hope.

 

Promises of Hope

Psalm 30:5, 8-12
Psalm 103:10-12
Psalm 147:3
Isaiah 40:29-31
Matthew 11:28-29
Romans 5:1-5
II Corinthians 4: 8, 9, 17, 18
Hebrews 6:19
Hebrews 13:5, 6