Holy Spirit

Optimism

Personal

Enlarged

Pastor Paul's sermon on Sunday was about God's gift of hope to us. He preached about four aspect of a Biblical hope.

"H" is for Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit verifies that our hope is really real. The Holy Spirit is our evidence.

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

Our hearts can be filled with joy and peace as we trust in God. How would it feel to have your heart overflow with hope - instead of gloom and doom?

I love what the "O" stands for ... Optimism!

Optimism is our eager anticipation of what God has said He will do!! Remember those two promises I wrote about yesterday? I eagerly await, anticipating how God will do what He is has promised He will do. Even if the outcome is far from what I imagine!

Whatever the outcome, I know it will be good!

Hope is the link between the already and the not yet. I titled this blog, "God's Faithfulness Through Infertility" because God has been faithful to me through past trials and I know this present trial of infertility is no exception.

Let's take a look at Abraham, who had optimism and trusted in the faithfulness of God.

Abraham was promised he would be the father of many nations but at the age of 90, he was still childless. But Scripture tells us, "Against all hope, Abraham in hope believed and so became the father of many nations, just as it had been said to him." Romans 4:18

Abraham had been told by God that he would be the father of many nations. Even at the childless age of 90, he put his hope in the Lord, because the Lord had said it would be so.

And Abraham became the father of many nations.

"P" is for Personal. God's loving kindness is the basis of our hope. It is because of God's loving kindness for mankind that he sent his only son, Jesus, to the world to be born as a baby. Hope came to us first in the form of a little baby lying in the manger. That hope is still available to us today. Even though, baby Jesus grew up and eventually died for our sins, He did not remain dead! He rose from the grave three days after His death, bringing forever hope to mankind who put their faith and trust in Him!

"E" is for Enlarged. Hope is a dynamic component of faith. As we hope in the Lord and we consistently see the faithfulness of God upon our lives, our ability to trust God only grows.

Stronger hope leads to a stronger faith, while a weaker hope leads to a weaker faith.

God has given us His Word (the Bible) as a means to develop our hope.

For everything that was written in the past was written to teach us, so that through endurance and the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope. Romans 15:4

Put your hope in the Lord today! If you are going through a trial, whether it be infertility or something entirely different, putting your hope in the Lord will greatly change your outlook on your present circumstances.

No longer will you feel a constant feeling of defeat, anger and an overall sadness. Instead, you will feel hope.

For in this hope we were saved. But hope that is seen is no hope at all. Who hopes for what he already has? But if we hope for what we do not yet have, we wait for it patiently. Romans 8:24

God is still at work ... and at this point in the journey I hope His plan is the Christmas Miracle we've all been praying for!

But far greater than my hope is for a Christmas Miracle, my hope is in the first Christmas Miracle...Jesus Christ, my Lord.

For you have been my hope, O Sovereign LORD, my confidence since my youth. Psalm 71:5

- Elaine