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. Rom. 15:13 (NIV)
Dear heavenly Father, meditating on this verse today is like standing under a gentle, steady shower of grace, after near drought-like conditions; or like waking up on a cool, crisp, morning in the mountains of Colorado after a month of high-humidity breath-sucking heat; or like a panoramic train ride through Switzerland, in which every scene seems to top the last. Such is the wonder of your Word, the sweetness of the gospel, and the power of hope.
Nothing or no one really has to change for your Spirit to bring us hope in the depths of our hearts, the messiness of our stories, and angst of our circumstances. Whether it’s a Supreme Court ruling or the poor choices of good friends, the cancelling of a flight or the loss of a favorite thing, the vacation that didn’t happen or the replacement of the air conditioner that had to happen, the cancer that came back or the prodigal that hasn’t yet… you are still God, still in control, and we have more than sufficient reasons to have hope—even overflow with hope.
You gave Jesus to us and for us. Everything that needed to be finished, when he was in this world, has been; and everything he’s yet to complete will be brought to a glorious, much-more-than-satisfying conclusion. We don’t have to like your sense of timing, but we cannot help but love and adore your Son. May your peace rule in our hearts as we wait for the sure-and-certain fulfillment of our hope. So very Amen we pray, in Jesus’ wonderful and merciful name.