The God of Hope

Where do joy and peace come from? They come from hope. They come from the certainty found through believing in Christ.

The God of Hope

This week's devotions are written by my friend Jessica Hermann, former director of our college ministry at Great Hills Baptist Church.

- Pastor Danny

"May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope."

(Romans 15:13)

A few years ago, my father had a life-threatening heart attack. I got one of those "you need to get here as fast as you can" phone calls. My father is not a believer, and I love him dearly. I'll never forget the group of people from church who all gathered in my living room before I flew out and urgently came to lift up my dad all-together in prayer. They worshiped with me and prayed prayers of great faith pleading for my dad's life and soul. I asked the Lord to speak to me through Scripture to encourage me and help me in that time. He led me to Romans 15:13.

Every time when I would go into my dad's hospital room, I would tell him the Gospel. I had told him many times before, but I shared it again and again. He was in a medical coma, but the doctors said he could probably still hear me. They said he might not remember what I said, but he could hear me. I shared anyway. I shared and I told him how much I loved him, and I cried and prayed this verse over him every single time: "May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope." (Romans 15:13) I was praying that my dad would believe and find hope through faith in Jesus. But in doing so, I was also filled with hope myself. Because, I believe, the God of hope provided abundant hope and joy amidst even the deepest of pain and fear.

Where do joy and peace come from? They come from hope. They come from the certainty found through believing in Christ. Where there is hope in Christ there is certainty. Where hope is absent there is anxiety and panic and worry. Miraculously, and much to all the doctors' surprise, my father survived. He had amazing care and a lot of modern medical help, but it was still a miracle that he recovered. I'm still praying for my dad's soul, but I'm so grateful for more time, and I'm so grateful to have great hope because of Jesus.

As I have discussed multiple times before, the first thing I look for when I'm studying a passage of Scripture is to see what the passage says about God. This verse tells us something wonderful about our great God: He is the God of hope! What a wonderful title for our God. He is the source of all hope, and wherever God is, there is abundant, overflowing hope. Don't look anywhere else for hope. All is empty aside from the God of hope. When you are feeling hopeless, remind yourself that you serve the God of hope. When you pray, remember that you are praying to the God of hope. I encourage you to refer to God and address Him as the God of hope in your prayers.

Another truth in this verse that is worth exploring is how hope comes to us through the power of the Holy Spirit: "...so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope." The Holy Spirit is our helper, our advocate. He is God in us, sent as our helper: the power of God living in each believer. This is where our hope originates. This means that the source of hope lives within you if you are a Christian. Hope is not far off. Hope is near. Hope is given through the power of the Holy Spirit who lives in the believer.

Thanks for journeying with me this week as I have reflected on the verses of Scripture that have been so meaningful to me in various seasons of my life. Which verses have been most meaningful to you in your life? Take some time to reflect on those. Not only is it encouraging to our souls to meditate on Scripture, but it is also so encouraging to look back of various seasons of your life and consider what the Lord was doing in your life and how He has convicted you, taught you, and uplifted you, and then to rejoice in how He has been faithful to you.

I pray this verse over you today: May the God of hope fill YOU with all joy and peace in believing so that by the power of the Holy Spirit YOU may abound in hope! Amen.