Romans 15:13 Now may the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, that you may abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit. (NKJV).

Hope! I’ve written about this subject before, (Brief Word – #6 September 2009), but I believe it is relevant today. Things all around us are being shaken – literally! The earthquake in Christchurch New Zealand last month is a wake up call to us in many ways.

We shouldn’t be alarmed at the increase in seismic activity. The disciples once came to Jesus and asked Him; “what will be the sign of Your coming, and of the end of the age?” His reply included; “And you will hear of wars and rumors of wars. See that you are not troubled; for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet. For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. And there will be famines, pestilences, and earthquakes in various places”. (See Matthew 24:3-7).

Notice those little words so often missed tucked in there: “See that you are not troubled”. If we are “troubled” by these and other world events, then we need peace, confidence, and, HOPE!

Today we are seeing those exact prophetic words of Jesus come to pass! Finances are being shaken, as we’ve seen with so many finance companies going bust. World economies are shaking, Eg: Ireland, Greece, Spain. Governments and Kingdoms are being shaken. Look at what’s happening in the Middle East nations with the political unrest and opposition to existing rule. (Watch that space!).

In the midst of all these external things, where is our security? Where is our confidence? Are we anchored? Do we have peace? Do we have an inner joy?

Maybe there’s some closer to home things going on, personal internal issues in our world that have rocked us and robbed us of hope, and left us wondering what is going on, where is God and where to from here?

We might think there are valid reasons not to hope. Look at verses such as Romans 5:3-5, where we have those tough but true words, “And not only that, but we also glory in tribulations, knowing that tribulation produces perseverance; and perseverance, character; and character, hope. Now hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit who was given to us”. (NKJV). None if us likes tribulations, pain, trials, pressure, stress – but His Word says it leads to hope, and hope does not disappoint! Wow!

We might think we have too many inadequacies to have hope! Tony Christiansen is a Tauranga City Councilor. He’s a successful businessman, a best selling author, a qualified lifeguard, honoured by World Surf Lifesaving Federation, an Olympic Gold Medalist in shot put, discus and javelin, he has a second degree black belt in Tae Kwon Do, he is a race car champion, a qualified pilot, (creating New Zealand aviation history), a qualified Scuba Diver, and in December 2002, against all odds, Tony climbed Mt Kilimanjaro, Africa’s highest mountain. But, Tony Christiansen is…, a…, DOUBLE AMPUTEE! He lost both his legs just below the hips at age nine in an accident!

No, inadequacies just give God more room to move!

Nothing disqualifies you from having hope, not age, not inadequacies, not sin, not where you’re from, not your past or present.

Hope is about dreams and visions. Remember God’s Word: Jeremiah 29:11 For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. (NIV).

In the field of psychology, there’s one school of thought, the behavior school that basically says that what we are is the result of our past conditioning; that we are nothing more than what the forces of our yesterdays have molded us into being. I don’t believe that. There’s good news! What you have been, what has happened to you, where you’ve come from, is not as important as what you choose to become. That is true personally, for your family, for businesses, for the church! That’s the good news of the Gospel. So what do you choose to become? What do you choose to believe?

Remember our text for this Brief Word. Romans 15:13 Now may the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in BELIEVING. (Emphasis mine). Believing is the key. Believing, leads to peace, which leads to joy!

You see we are more molded by the future than the past. That’s what makes us superior to animals. Animals are conditioned by their breeding, their environment, their past. But humans are able to imagine and dream and think about the future. Someone once said, “Dreams and visions are the language of the Holy Spirit”, but they are also the language of the hope filled!

Proverbs 29:18 Where there is no vision, the people perish: but he that keepeth the law, happy is he. (KJV). That verse paraphrased: “… when the old no longer have their dreams and the young no longer have their visions, the people perish”. We’ve got to believe in the future – the future and the hope God has revealed and promised and given to us in dreams and visions and from His Word. Tony Compolo says: “We are old when our memories are more important to us than our dreams. That’s what makes us old”.

God is the source of eternal hope, the source of eternal life and salvation, and He is the object of hope for every believer! Connection to God in relationship is the only way to get real hope! He is our King, He knows everything about everything, He knows what is going on where and when, and why! And He’s not finished yet!

Romans 15:13 Now may THE GOD OF HOPE fill you with all joy and peace in BELIEVING, that you may abound in hope by the POWER – (“dunamis”, miraculous ability of God) of the Holy Spirit. (NKJV).

There is hope! God is alive! He is for you! The best is yet to come for you! When you need hope and help, press in to God! Get to know Him more! When life seems wrong, and against the flow, BELIEVE! His Word is alive and active, the Holy Spirit, the Spirit of Truth, through the Bible, will give you hope! True hope is not unfounded optimism, but a blessed assurance!