The God of Hope

“Now may the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing so that you will abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.” Romans 15:13

“And hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out within our hearts through the Holy Spirit who was given to us.” Romans 5:5

Five years ago, I vividly remember standing beside the hospital bed of a young Ugandan couple in the village of Hoima, Uganda where my friends, the Jennings, were serving the Lord as missionaries.  On this one particular day during our visit, we ventured inside the local hospital where I witnessed this young couple weeping for their two tiny premature twin girls who were lying naked, emaciated and helpless on a hospital gurney.  The word “hope” was not on the radar of any onlooker in the room that day.  And in the midst of that hopeless situation, the Lord in His providence allowed me the honor of sharing the Gospel with that young father and seeing him respond in faith to Jesus Christ.  As his daughters drifted out of this life and into the hands of their Heavenly Maker, this young father was dying to his old life and finding new life in Jesus Christ, the hope of the world.  He found hope that day in the midst of an incredibly hopeless and dark situation.

It’s no secret that you and I live in a culture that is starving for hope. There are people searching for and seeking after hope through every avenue imaginable.  And yet, hope seems all-the-more evasive and impossible to grasp.

May we be reminded today of just who is the author of hope.  As Paul reminded the Roman believers that hope comes from God, and His hope does not disappoint, may you and I experience today in a fresh way this God of hope who desires to fill us with all joy and peace so that we might abound in hope through the power of the Holy Spirit.  The God of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob and Paul is without question, the God of hope.  May we experience Him as such today and be driven to both intercessory prayer and into evangelistic action for those all around us needing this hope.