Overflowing Hope
Romans 5:13 May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him,(in believing) so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.(NIV)
Hope happens. It’s not something to seek after itself, but it’s more of an inevitable indicator that something else is being sought after.
I remember arriving on the University of Denver campus for the start of my freshman year. In search of a college where I could actually get a degree studying classical guitar, I had discovered the program at DU and was thankfully accepted as a student in their Lamont School of Music. I was determined to make it through the 4 years and do my very best to excel in all the required courses. From the start I was excited about the incredible opportunity before me and the possibility of success at the end of the coming 4 years.
Though I was able to complete the goal and make it through to the end, it wasn’t without significant challenges to the belief that I could actually climb this mountain. As I look back on it, one of the greatest challenges took place that first week on campus. My dorm roommate and I were both invited to join the Lambda Chi fraternity. After going to some of their events, however, I was unable to feel confident that the lifestyle there at the fraternity would enable me to accomplish my goal and achieve my purpose for being at the university. It seemed to me that there was a great diversion of focus there that would keep me from doing what it would take to be successful, and as I considered the invitation there wasn’t an accompanying joy and peace with the thought. Though there was promise of good times and brotherhood in the frat house, there wasn’t strengthened hope for my desired end.
There would be additional challenges on a daily basis to making it through to the goal, and I found that just having a goal really wasn’t enough. It was believing and acting on the program laid out before me that would take me to that goal. Every semester had certain prerequisites and required courses that were essential to meeting the degree essentials, and I discovered that with each fulfilled requisite I was filled with a sense of joy and peace resulting in renewed hope that inspired and motivated me further towards my goal. On the other hand, I found that failure to really believe in and take seriously the course material before me would tend to result in a degree of failure that greatly undermined the joy and peace that was so essential for my much needed hope of success. The vision of my desired end (hope) was directly connected to how full of joy and peace I was, and this was based totally on my respect, honor and action with regard to the curriculum’s demands. As my trust in the program’s process affected my lifestyle and time spent, so hope formed around my goal.
We have a promise or goal that has been set before us in Christ of a completed program of overcoming success. Like Jesus, though, and the joy set before Him, there is endurance of course requirements that will reveal just how great is our belief in the process. Just having the goal of even heaven itself will not be enough. It will require a belief and trust in the program of righteousness set before us in the Word to take us through to our desired end. With each completed act of obedience with an attitude of worship, our God of hope will fill us with joy and peace, along with an overflow of inspiring and motivating hope. Passionate pursuit of God’s way will place us far from the disabling and destructive oppression and terror of sin’s failure, and we’ll be enabled to overcome every obstacle and course requirement with excellence.
Where there is a lack of hope along with a dimmed vision of the promise in Christ, there is an indicator that trust in the God of hope may have been diverted or challenged somewhere along the way. Great confidence and surety will directly follow each commitment to His way, His words, His thoughts, and His actions, and no matter the severity of the circumstance or storm, there is a steadfast hope that can remain or be renewed when trust’s demonstration results in a filling of joy and peace from our God of hope. It will be worth so very much more than any social club, or earthly diversion of any kind, to enter into the ultimate joy of the Lord having obtained our goal, fulfilled our purpose, and set foot into the blessed eternal hope of knowing Him face to face.
Proverbs 16:3 Commit thy works unto the LORD, and thy thoughts shall be established.
Romans 15:4 For whatsoever things were written aforetime were written for our learning, that we through patience and comfort of the scriptures might have hope.
Romans 5:1 Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ:
:2 By whom also we have access by faith into this grace wherein we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God.
:3 And not only so, but we glory in tribulations also: knowing that tribulation worketh patience;
:4 And patience, experience; and experience, hope:
:5 And hope maketh not ashamed; because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given unto us.
