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. —Romans 15:13 (NIV)
A very well-known journalist is hosting a special documentary on the justice system in America. A trailer around the show highlighted an inmate’s comments on his perspective as to why the justice system needs reform. He didn’t talk about the unfairness of any punishment, or racial disparity amongst the imprisoned. He spoke about hope. He made a simple statement about how powerful hope is and how damaging it is to have no hope. “Hope is everything,” he said. And it really resonated with me.
Prophetess Smith hosted bible study the other week and she focused that Tuesday night’s teaching on “hope”. Hope is defined as a confident expectation of something that is to come. We reviewed a number of scriptures that reinforced the significance of hope in the lives of Christians! And we discussed how hope and faith work hand in hand. Faith is “now” while hope is involved with the future.
Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see. —Hebrews 11:1 (NIV)
In these days and times, we hear and see a lot in the news that challenges our hope (and faith). Some dreadful things happen when hope fades away. When contentment gives way to disappointment and discouragement, marriages fail, families break down, companies fold, communities suffer, and people give up. As a nation, hope is vital. As Christians, hope is vital. Hope fuels our dreams for the future—here on earth and for our eternal state. So I must encourage you to maintain your hope!
History reveals how powerful hope has been in transforming nations. It’s more than just optimistic thinking. Hope is a very powerful force when anchored in God and unleashed in the life of a believer! When discouragement is turned into hope, the impossible becomes possible. Defeat turns into victory. Despair and fear fade away. So search the scriptures about hope and get anchored!
A college classmate of mine usually ends every conversation with this declaration: “Keep hope alive!” So, I’m going to take a page from his book today and tell you this very same thing: KEEP HOPE ALIVE!
