Humanity has been created with the need for hope as well as the ability to hope. What is seen in the world as reality is often a stark contradiction to the unseen of hope. There is a tension between the "already" and "not yet" of hope.
Through the presence of God we are able to live in hope regardless of hopeless circumstances. Hope through the presence and power of the love of God creates a strength to face today and tomorrow.
Take time to meditate on hope found through the power and presence of God. Receive hope through the active work of the Spirit:
Allow the hope of God to fill your thoughts, words, and actions. Ask the Spirit of God to exchange hopelessness for hope: Therefore my heart is glad and my tongue rejoices; my body also will live in hope Acts 2:26, Psalm 16, NIV).
Be still for a few minutes. Be aware of the love of Christ. Concentrate on Christ, God with us, the "already" of hope: And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us. (Romans 5:5, NIV)
Refocus. Put aside all the details of the day and focus on the "not yet" of 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 8:24-25, NIV)
Ask God to open your eyes to the "already" and the "not yet" of hope through the life you have received: I pray also that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints (Ephesians 1:18, NIV)
Meditate on the power of the "already" and "not yet" of your experience of hope: But Christ is faithful as a son over God's house. And we are his house, if we hold on to our courage and the hope of which we boast. (Hebrews 3:8, NIV)
Take time to thank God for the "already" and "not yet" of hope: Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead,and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade-- kept in heaven for you,(I Peter 1:3-4, NIV)
Live in hope.
Learning with you to receive the "already" and "not yet" of hope,
Shalom,
Kerrie
(All devotions written by Kerrie Palmer ©2008 All Rights Reserved)
