Hope is fuel for an aching soul. I’ve been in some hopeless situations where daily I was looking for the smallest glimmer of hope. Just a little bit would give me energy and increase my faith. It’s in times like those that I also learned my hope lies beyond my current circumstances look like. My true hope comes from the Lord. His report is greater than anything I can see with my physical eyes. It’s in those hopeless situations that I have to activate my faith in God and lean into Him because He is the ultimate authority.
In Romans 4, Paul is using Abraham as an example of someone who had hope in a hopeless situation. Verse 18 says, “Even when there was no reason for hope, Abraham kept hoping—believing that he would become the father of many nations. For God had said to him, ‘That’s how many descendants you will have!’” (NLT) He trusted God over his circumstances and held onto hope when everything else told him that God’s promise was an impossibility. The next verse said his faith didn’t weaken as he waited for God to fulfill what He said. His example to us is something we can emulate and strive for as we face situations where there is no reason to hope.
Paul goes in In Romans 5:5 to say, “And this hope will not lead to disappointment. For we know how dearly God loves us, because he has given us the Holy Spirit to fill our hearts with his love.” Just like Abraham’s faith grew stronger, ours can to in whatever we face. In Christ, there is always hope. When we face the toughest of circumstances, our faith has the greatest opportunity to grow. God uses situations to produce in us character traits, faith and hope. The hope we have in Him is the hope that will not disappoint even when whatever we’re facing doesn’t go according to our plan or desires. Our hope in Him can still remain strong because it goes beyond the moment. Our hope and faith are eternal.
Photo by Constant Loubier on Unsplash
Devotions by Chris Hendrix 