STOP PLACING YOUR HOPE IN GOD
What is it to "hope?" It is a wish that a desire in your heart would come true. It is a longing, that you believe might become reality. It is a combination of wanting and believing that something may actually happen. The Bible is clear about hope and also clear about faith. Hebrews says that faith is "being sure of what we hope for." So I say, stop placing your hope in God and start placing your faith in Him. In other words, don't believe that God might answer your prayers, believe that He will. It is OK to have expectations on God. He is faithful.
I have at times thought about something I longed for and believed that God wanted me to have it, and could bless me with it, but wondered if He actually would. My faith has been challenged and pushed to a new level to instead believe that he will. When the scriptures says, "trust in the Lord and he will give you the desires of your heart," there isn't a "maybe" factor involved.
Consider this, God has expectations on us. He wants us to be faithful, just as He is faithful. If we are both faithful, couldn't we both have expectations on one another? Isn't that what faithfulness is about? If a person is faithful, you know you can count on him. You know what to expect from him. Likewise, God is faithful, so we should know what we can expect from Him. He even tells us to trust in Him, and He will provide.
So if hope is good, faith is better. Let's move beyond hope to faith in God.
I have at times thought about something I longed for and believed that God wanted me to have it, and could bless me with it, but wondered if He actually would. My faith has been challenged and pushed to a new level to instead believe that he will. When the scriptures says, "trust in the Lord and he will give you the desires of your heart," there isn't a "maybe" factor involved.
Consider this, God has expectations on us. He wants us to be faithful, just as He is faithful. If we are both faithful, couldn't we both have expectations on one another? Isn't that what faithfulness is about? If a person is faithful, you know you can count on him. You know what to expect from him. Likewise, God is faithful, so we should know what we can expect from Him. He even tells us to trust in Him, and He will provide.
So if hope is good, faith is better. Let's move beyond hope to faith in God.
posted by Tony at
7:54 AM
1 Comments:
Do you suppose Hope had a narrower meaning in the days of King James? It almost seems to be a synonym for Faith in that version.
I once asked, "What does it mean to use the Lord's name in vain?" Is it to swear, in the way that provoked my Mother to bring out the bar of soap? Or is it to presume upon God the vain desires of our heart? I am moving towards invoking God to satisfy our fleshly desires as being the more clear definition of using God's name in vain. The song by Janis Joplin, "Mercedes Benz", comes to mind.
As long as I am in God's will, the desires of my heart will be in line with God's will, and asking God, in prayer, for that which will further me along the path of God's will, is something I can have complete faith in. I can hope that what I am asking for is within God's will, but I have faith that God knows best, so sometimes the answer to my prayer is a resounding "NO!". And sometimes, it is a timing issue, "Not now". And sometimes, we cannot measure the blessings we receive in answer to prayer. But always, we can have faith that God will bless us abundantly if we are faithful, just as he will not test us with more trials than we can handle.
An old hymn that we never hear anymore, based on Matthew 6:33 in the King James says it all to me: "... seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you."
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cliffmeister2000, at 4:39 PM
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