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Are we people of hope?
It wasn’t that long ago that by missing God’s goal for us, we weren’t living a very “smart” life. But God saved us from all of that. It was all His doing. He is God and in a very good mood.
It was not anything we could have figured out on our own. He gave us a very good bath. So we are all clean now by way of the Holy Spirit. He has been so generous to us. Through Jesus we are living a new life. What a gift to have our relationship restored with Him.
And there is more. We get to live this new life forever. No end to it at all. We are people of hope?
At one time we too were foolish, disobedient, deceived and enslaved by all kinds of passions and pleasures. We lived in malice and envy, being hated and hating one another. But when the kindness and love of God our Savior appeared, he saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit, whom he poured out on us generously through Jesus Christ our Savior, so that, having been justified by his grace, we might become heirs having the hope of eternal life. Titus 3:3-7 TNIV
Do you want the life of any Christian you know?
A curious warning is given to us in Peter’s first letter. There he tells us to be ready to give the reason for the hope that lies within us to everyone who asks (3:15). Now, what’s strange about that passage is this: no one ever asks.
When was the last time someone stopped you to inquire about the reason for the hope that lies within you? You’re at the market, say, in the frozen food section. A friend you haven’t seen for some time comes up to you, grasps you by both shoulders and pleads, “Please, you’ve got to tell me. Be honest now. How can you live with such hope? Where does it come from? I must know the reason.” Has this ever happened to you? Under any circumstances?
Yet God tells us to be ready, so what’s wrong? To be blunt, nothing about our lives is worth asking about. There’s nothing intriguing about our hopes, nothing to make anyone curious. Not that we don’t have hopes; we do. We hope we’ll have enough after taxes this year to take a summer vacation. We hope our kids don’t wreck the car. We hope our favorite team goes to the World Series. We hope our health doesn’t give out, and so on. Nothing wrong with any of those hopes; nothing unusual, either.
Everyone has hopes like that, so why bother asking us? It’s life as usual. Sanctified resignation has become the new abiding place of contemporary Christians. No wonder nobody asks.
Do you want the life of any Christian you know?
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Should I give up hope?
God is great. Nothing is impossible with Him. When the odds seem to be against us, God finds a way to reach us.
Against all odds. Don’t give up hope. Some people change. Love finds a way.
— Kenny Chesney
“Stand in line and take your turn.” ~~Jesus
Jesus had been pretty busy. He took a trip to a new area thinking he could get away for a while. He entered a house there where he didn’t think he would be found, but he couldn’t escape notice.
He was barely inside when a woman who had a disturbed daughter heard where he was. She came and knelt at his feet, begging for help. The woman was Greek, Syro-Phoenician by birth. She wasn’t a part of the Jewish faith so not a member of the favored religious groups.
She asked Jesus to cure her daughter. While not a part of the in crowd, she believed in Jesus completely.
So imagine her surprise at Jesus answer. “Stand in line” He says. Really?
He says a few more things intended, on the surface, to discourage her.
She said, “Of course, Master. But don’t dogs under the table get scraps dropped by the children?”
This impressed Jesus. He told her to go home and that her daughter was healed.
Imagine impressing Jesus. What is the key? Don’t get discouraged. Keep asking. Believe that He really wants to help. Really believe that. Know that your turn is coming.
“Stand in line and take your turn.” ~~Jesus (Mark 7:27 The Message)
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Can I hope unswervingly?
Flag of the Areopagus of Eastern Continental Greece (1821-1825), with symbols of faith, charity (love), and hope (First Epistle to the Corinthians, chapter 13). (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
This is an essential item. Without hope, I am lost every day. In fact, every minute of every day.
And so, when I am filled with Him and the power of His HOLY Spirit, I hope unswervingly. I don’t deviate from hope at all. This leads me to maturity. This leads me to completeness.
But for right now, until that completeness, we have three things to do to lead us toward that consummation: Trust steadily in God, hope unswervingly, love extravagantly. And the best of the three is love. 1 Corinthians 13:13
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Does God have enough?
This seems pretty timely. The economy goes up and down. That creates a lot of uncertainty. A lot of us trust in it our 401K. Better to trust in God who provides for us according to His richness. We should be rich in good deeds. We should be generous. We should share with those in need.
Then there is God’s economy. It is certain. It will never evaporate from in front of our eyes. God’s economy doesn’t need a bailout. He is in a good mood. He is generous. He has plenty to go around.
Command those who are rich in this present world not to be arrogant nor to put their hope in wealth, which is so uncertain, but to put their hope in God, who richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment. Command them to do good, to be rich in good deeds, and to be generous and willing to share. In this way they will lay up treasure for themselves as a firm foundation for the coming age, so that they may take hold of the life that is truly life. 1 Timothy 6:17-19
“Any area of my life for which I have no hope is under the influence of a lie.” ~~Bill Johnson
Words of strength and heart
John the Baptist was an amazing man of God. His words gave strength to people. His words put heart in them. Of course, they also offended the powerful. But John was faithful to the Message. His focus was on delivering God’s message of hope. He did not focus on who he would offend in the process.
May I have his same faithfulness. May I speak words that give people strenght and heart.
There was a lot more of this—words that gave strength to the people, words that put heart in them. The Message! But Herod, the ruler, stung by John’s rebuke in the matter of Herodias, his brother Philip’s wife, capped his long string of evil deeds with this outrage: He put John in jail. Luke 3:18-20
Leaning In: A Poem
I am not where I want to be.
I am leaning in to hear
the Lord more clearly.
I want to get closer.
I want to hear Him clearly.
I want the completeness
that comes from knowing Him.
So what can lead to that?
What is the path I should be on?
Trust.
Trust steadily in Him.
Trust completely.
Trust in what He says to me.
Hope.
And hope more.
Hope unswervingly.
Hope without the doubt
that can creep in.
Hope.
Love.
Love extravagantly.
Love without fear.
Love perfectly in His love.
Love like He loves me.
The best of all of these
is His extravagent love.
Love extravagantly
There is love and then there is extravagant love. My Father loves me extravagantly. I should love the same way. He isn’t reserved and holding back. Not at all. He sees me from afar and 
comes running. When I ran from Him he watched everyday waiting for me to return.
On seeing me a long way off, He came running for me. His heart was pounding. He embraced me. He kissed me. He brought me clean clothes, the best He has. He put His ring on my finger; the family ring He has been saving for a special time. He prepared an amazing feast for me. We celebrated. I was lost but He never stopped loving.
May I love like that!!! May I love extravagantly!!
But for right now, until that completeness, we have three things to do to lead us toward that consummation: Trust steadily in God, hope unswervingly, love extravagantly. And the best of the three is love. 1 Corinthians 13:13
Trust steadily
As I seek to mature in the Lord, one of the big three things to focus on is trusting Him more and more. I need to be steady in my trust. Not trusting one day and then not the next. Maturity is what I need to strive for. It is so easy to slide into trusting anything but God. That is so immature.
So it is focus and consistency. That is the key. Focus on Him who will complete everything. He is leading us toward that consummation. It is His heart’s desire.
But for right now, until that completeness, we have three things to do to lead us toward that consummation: Trust steadily in God, hope unswervingly, love extravagantly. 1 Corinthians 13
Staying ready
We are children of God but we are becoming like Jesus. Being children isn’t the end game. Sometimes we think it is. But the end game is not to be children but to become fully mature in God.
Jesus life is our model. And our hope is that when we see Him, we will become like Him. And for that we have hope and look forward to His coming.
The focus now is staying ready. We should run the race knowing that we will gain the prize. The purity of His life becomes our standard. Are we there yet? No. Do we run to gain the prize? Yes!!!
But friends, that’s exactly who we are: children of God. And that’s only the beginning. Who knows how we’ll end up! What we know is that when Christ is openly revealed, we’ll see him—and in seeing him, become like him. All of us who look forward to his Coming stay ready, with the glistening purity of Jesus’ life as a model for our own. 1 John 3:2-3
Spiritual lifeline
We have run with our very lives to God. He is our spritual lifeline for sure. We have hope. So we see the lifeline He gives us and grab it with both hands. It is secure. We don’t let go.Why would we?
His spirtual lifeline is unbreakable. It reaches past this unreal world right to the very presence of God. That is where Jesus is who went ahead of us. He is there interceeding for us and giving us right standing. This is the new plan based God’s goal of complete redemption.
God did this so that, by two unchangeable things in which it is impossible for God to lie, we who have fled to take hold of the hope offered to us may be greatly encouraged. We have this hope as an anchor for the soul, firm and secure. It enters the inner sanctuary behind the curtain, where Jesus, who went before us, has entered on our behalf. He has become a high priest forever, in the order of Melchizedek. Hebrews 10:18-20
Longing fulfilled
In the middle of the night, I cry out to you O God. 
There is a longing in my heart for you. It just won’t go away. I can’t put it off. I don’t want to defer it to another time. Delay is not right at all. I want my heart to be whole and well. And so I seek you. I cry out to you. When I don’t have the energy any longer, I know you do. When I don’t feel I can go on, I know you did and so I can. Your strength is my hope. Your courage is all I need.
You are so good to fulfill my longing for what I need. You are a tree of life. Your love is a very healthy tree. The fruit so lucious. There is plenty for me. It’s branches just keep spreading out for me to take the fruit.
Your love is so enduring. My heart is whole because of you!! You are love. Your new agreement with me is based on your love.
May my longing for you produce the fruit of a right living life. May your rest be my peace.
Hope deferred makes the heart sick,
but a longing fulfilled is a tree of life. Proverbs 13:12
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