I Hope

For in hope we were saved. Now hope that is seen is not hope, because who hopes for what he sees? But if we hope for what we do not see, we eagerly wait for it with endurance.

Romans 8:24-25 

 

I was talking with a friend recently, who told me that in the last 5 weeks she had lost a friend to suicide.  One of the reasons people attempt suicide is they have lost hope.  They feel as if there is no reason for them to continue existing.  Yet that is a lie we are being fed every single day!

 

You see, the English word "HOPE" conveys doubt.  "I HOPE is doesn't rain."  There is some question as to whether it will rain or not.  However, the Greek word "ELPIS" which is used in today's passage, means "Joyful & Confident Expectation."   And it's companion word in Hebrew "PATAH" means confidence, security, being without care.  In the Greek and Hebrew, the word "HOPE" does not have even the concept of doubt as part of the word.

 

So what does that mean to us?  When we HOPE in Christ, we have confidence and security that He will do as He promised.  When He said 'I will NEVER leave you or reject you' we don't have to wonder if that is true because we KNOW it is true.  And here's the Kicker...even when we don't SEE Him working in our lives, we can rest in the knowledge that He is, and THAT is HOPE.

 

Think about this, when we see someone struggling, we become that messenger of HOPE for them.  As the Apostle said in 2 Corinthians 1, "God didn't comfort us to make us comfortable, he comforts us so that we may comfort others" and THAT is one way we can become the HOPE for others.