Are you filled with hope? Where does your hope come from? Does it come from the promise of a promotion at work? Perhaps a new relationship? Or, are you without much hope right now? Do you know there is a hope available to you that has no end?
When the word hope is used in our language today, it is often used to replace the word wish. That’s not really its meaning. The modern definition is having a feeling that something we want is attainable. Yet that isn’t the definition meant when we read it in the Bible. The meaning in the Bible is what today’s dictionaries call an archaic meaning, which is to put trust in whatever it is you hope for. In other words, if you put your hope in Jesus Christ, you put your trust in Him.
We are to hope in God, in Jesus Christ. Our hope should not be a simple wish, but a confidence that what we hope for will come to pass. Jesus is our cornerstone (1 Peter 2:6-8), our foundation. He came to provide us with hope, joy, and peace when we trust Him. He does this by filling us with the Holy Spirit.
Perhaps you are wondering why you don’t have hope, if you are filled with the Holy Spirit. The simple answer is our pride. You see, we want to be in control, we deceive ourselves into thinking we are in control, and we don’t allow the Holy Spirit to work our lives. Simply put, we squelch His work.
If we want to have an overflowing hope, we must get out of the way. We must stop thinking we are in control and allow the Holy Spirit to work in our lives. We are to spend time in prayer, asking God to help us get out of the way and allow His Spirit to work for us and in us.
We have the ultimate hope readily available to us. We can have an overflowing hope that provides us with joy and peace. We can experience this hope regardless of our situation. Putting our trust in God is putting our hope into action.
Unfortunately, in our technology riddled culture, we have lost the awe of God. We put our trust in electronic gadgets. We can get answers to our questions in the blink of an eye with a quick search on our smart phones. We look at them to provide answers to every question that pops in our heads, never stopping to ask God to provide the answers to the most important questions. Instead, we try to rationally come up with our answers using logic based on answers we got from our smart phones.
I pray we all start looking to God to find answers to our important questions. I pray each of us will set aside our pride and belief that we are in control to rely on God, allowing the Holy Spirit to work in our lives. I pray we put our hope in God. Look to God for answers. Trust Him to provide. Put your hope in God. He is trustworthy.
Romans 15:13 May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.
Marty Pressey 