Skip to main content

One Verse that Says a Lot

“May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit” (Romans 15:13).  I like this little prayer because it teaches us five important facts.
                First, it says that our God is a “God of hope”.  I love that description!  We do not serve a God that is out to get us or out to make our lives miserable.  We serve a God who is defined by hope.  Therefore, there is no reason to despair or give up, because anything can happen.  Nothing is hopeless if God is involved.
Next, this passage tells us that Christians ought to be filled with all joy and peace.  If your Christian walk is making you miserable or negative, then you are doing something wrong.   Note the word “filled” as well.  Joy and peace are not qualities that we have in small measure.  Rather, these are the words that define God’s people.
                Interestingly, these new attitudes come “as you trust in him [God]”.  This new life is not solely dependent on me trying harder.  It is not something that I can create.  Rather, it is the gift of God.
                God’s master plan in all of this is that we would “overflow with hope”.  The key word here is “overflow”.  God’s people should be so full of God’s blessings that those good things spill out and are seen and felt by all those around us.  Faith is not a personal and private thing.  Rather it is something that should spill over and make things better every where we go.
                Lastly, this prayer reminds us again that none of this comes about by our own power or our own best intentions.  If we could bring about these changes on our own, then we would, but it is not possible.  The new life that we need is only accessible “by the power of the Holy Spirit”.  I am not exactly sure what all that entails, but it certainly is nice to know that there is more going on that what I see or know.
                I wonder what would happen if we really thought about what Romans 15:13 says and then prayed this little prayer for ourselves and others.
                I guess there is only one way to find out!

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

New Article: Grace Changes Everything

               A young man broke into a business and did $5000 damage. As part of his Restorative Justice sentence, he was required to meet with my friend Garth.   Garth believes in making apologies and restitution.   It took several months, but Garth finally convinced the young man that these were necessary steps, so he tried to arrange a meeting with the business owner.                The business owner wanted nothing to do with this situation.   He was angry and wanted a more severe form of justice.   Eventually, however, he agreed to meet the young man to hear what he had to say.                  The young man looked the business owner in the eye an...
Post a Comment
Read more

New Article: We need a Better Scorecard

                   “Is that a Sun Ice?”                “Excuse me,” I said.                My friend pointed to my new ski jacket and asked again, “Is that a Sun Ice?”                It was 1991 and Sun Ice was the big name in ski wear at the time.   “No” I replied, “I can’t afford one of those”.                “Oh” he said as he lost interest and then just walked away.                I had not seen this friend in more than a year and, sadly, his first ...
Post a Comment
Read more

New Article: Surprised by God

                 We would be shocked if we could hear the Bible for the first time again.   On every page, something unexpected happens.   The only reason we are not surprised is that the stories are so familiar to us.   Think about some of the unexpected interactions that God has had with his people.                For example, every culture has stories about a creator, but none imagined that God would become part of the creation.   That the creator would lower himself and become human is surprising, to say the least.                Not only did he become one of us, but he also came as a baby.   A tiny, helpless, baby!   If I wer...
Post a Comment
Read more