Radical Hope

In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now, being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion. -Philippians 1:4-6 NIV

I once heard a pastor say “Any area in your life that is not infused with hope, you believe a lie in that area.” That’s a tough statement. There are many times every day when I look at my own life and I don’t jump for joy. Does that mean I believe a ton of lies?! Let me explain it like this.

Our little, finite brains cannot grasp the all-encompassing goodness of God on their own. When we see a hopeless situation, we see it as it is: a hopeless situation. But The Holy Spirit wants to change the lenses through which we view hopelessness. God is bringing a new revelation of how He sees the "hopeless" situations of our lives and the lives of those around us.

I have seen many situations where someone makes a mistake and those closest to them wield fear instead of hope. Their actions towards that wayward person are birthed out of genuine concern and biblical principles; but eventually, they let fear overcome them, and they are no longer able to love. For them, it is all on their shoulders to “bring them back to the truth.” Here’s truth for you: God’s redemptive plan for every person spans beyond your comprehension and beyond that person’s mistakes. God WILL carry that good work on to completion. Yes, be used by the Holy Spirit to confront sin and spur one another on, but do so from a foundation of hope. Yes, it won’t usually make sense to have hope; but that is the definition of RADICAL HOPE.

- This blog was written by Nate Hinton as part of the Radical Series. Nate is the Worship Director at Elim Gospel Church.