Do we talk about hope enough?

As I was preparing this morning for Sunday's message, I ran across several references to "hope" in Romans 15.

• Verse 4 - Scripture was written that we might have hope.
• Verse 12 - The Gentiles will find hope in the root of Jesse (Jesus Christ).
• Verse 13 - God is the God of hope.
• Verse 13 - The power of the Holy Spirit makes us abound in hope.

So, do we find ourselves hoping in Christ? When our world blows up, do we look to the Spirit to help us abound in hope? Do we turn to the Scriptures to give us hope? Do we let our hope in God fill us with joy and peace because we believe in Jesus?

I think I need to adjust some of the ways I encourage people. I need to remind them more often to not lose hope. I also need to remind myself of that and pray that God will bring ministers of hope in my life.

For the Christian, our hope is not just wishful thinking, or pie-in-the-sky fairy tales. It is hope rooted in the love of the Father, the cross of the Son, and the working of the Spirit.

So this is my prayer for Ogletown today. It was actually the prayer of Paul for the church at Rome, and I am positive I cannot improve on it.

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.