Hope Channels

Romans 1513


Our God is calling us to be channels of hope into other people's lives. It is a wonderful role to play in the family of God as well as in the society around us. Let us explore the possibility of achieving this through trustful prayer. We shall see that we must count on the generating power of God's Holy Spirit as we make it a priority.

1. PRIME SOURCE of HOPE
2. PRODUCTS of HOPE
3. PERSONAL CHANNELS of HOPE
4. POWER GENERATOR of HOPE

1. PRIME SOURCE of HOPE


"May God, the Source of hope....," (GNB)

(a) Hope springs from God

God is the Source of true hope which springs into our hearts as we put our trust in him, Hope coming from God reflects His love, grace, power and faithfulness. His promises can all be relied on in the ups and downs of life. Our Father in heaven wants all in His family not only to receive hope from Him but also to share His hope with others, the wonderful hope of eternal life, John 316.

(b) Hope resourced by trust

Hope is certainty about the future based on our trust in God's character revealed in His Word. As we trust in Him, we draw on His hope resources which fill our hearts and lives to the point of overflowing, It might be a good idea to begin each day with a prayer like this, "Lord, I want to begin this day by placing my hope afresh in

You because I am trusting in You." (c) Affirmed in daily prayer
As we affirm our hope in God, our Father in heaven, high hope will counteract the tendency to despair that daily adversity may cause in our think ing. A second good idea would be to memorize passages such as Romans 1513 so that they will surface in our minds when we lift our hearts to God Throughout the day. Focussing on hope in our prayers will make us positive in our thinking, speech and behaviour.

2. PRODUCTS of HOPE

".....fill you with all joy and peace..." (a) Two products joy & peace

Joy


Joy in daily life springs from joy in the Lord which, in turn, is produced by hope in God. S.D. Gordon wrote, "Joy is distinctly a Christian word and a Christian thing. It is the reverse of happiness. Happiness is the result of what happens of an agreeable sort. Joy has its springs deep down inside. And that spring never runs dry, no matter what happens, Only Jesus gives joy." Joy is hope echoing within us!

Peace

God's peace passes understanding, Phi.47. "Peace is not the absence of conflict from life, but the God-given ability to cope with life!" Like joy it is an echo of God's life generating hope within all who trust in Him.

(b) Trust "...as you trust in him...."

Trust and hope are twin sisters. Hope is trust in God as we face the future. It is not a guestion of us fighting to hold on, "Do no try to hold God's hand; let Him hold yours. Let Him do the holding and you do the trusting." (H.W.Webb-Peploe)


As we trust in God, hope is generated in us by God Himself, then joy and peace will flower in our hearts enriching our lives, our relationships and society around us,

3. PERSONAL CHANNELS of HOPE


"....so that you may overflow with hope...."

(a) Connected to the Source

As we trust in God we are linked to Him Who is the only true Source of genuine hope. It helps us to remain aware of this link if we reaffirm our trust in Him daily in our prayers.

(b) Clean channels

Unconfessed sin, an unforgiving spirit, anger out of control and other wrongs grieve God's Holy Spirit, see Eph.430. Sincere confession clears hope channels. What has been clogging our channels is then cleared away and hope begins to overflow again into others' lives through us.

(c) Constant flow

The overflow from our lives enriches others' lives. Connected by trust and kept clear by confession, we can become channels of God's hope into the hearts of people around us. This is what God wants us to be. What could be more wonderful than to bring hope into the hopeless life of another person?

4. POWER GENERATOR of HOPE

is the Holy Spirit Who helps us

(a) Opening our hearts
To be without God is to be without hope, see Eph.212. The Holy Spirit helps us to open the
door to the Source of hope when all else seems hopeless. Let's not shut the door on hope!

(b) Overflowing with hope

Let's focus on hope in our prayers, see Psalms 42,43 where the writer tells himself three times to put his hope in God. As we do this, hope will begin to flow and eventually overflow to those hopeless people in our circle of friends,

(c) Overcoming hurts

by generating true hope, God's hope surging through us, heals relationships ruined by selfishness, resentment and unkindness. Is God's hope surging through us or just trickling into us?


SUMMARY

As we resource hope
through trust in God
we become channels of hope
surging into other's hearts
empowered by God's Holy Spirit.

LESSONS


1. In prayer we must focus on God as our
Hope-Source in order to start the flow
of hope into our lives,

2. Joy and peace are hope products flowering
in our lives.

3. As hope pours through us into others' lives,
people are encouraged and lives are changed;

4. A hope surge generated ',y the Holy Spirit will beal hurts!


NJT 2000



PRAYER


Gracious heavenly Father,
hope is withering in so many hearts,
drying up in communities and families
all around me,
scouring society with hopelessness
and I'm hearing cries for help.

O Lord, You are the infinite Source
of all true hope,

so I come to You with a deep desire
to be Your hope-channel to people in need

I place myself at Your disposal.
Fill me with Your Spirit, I pray,
and pour hope through me
into hope-dry hearts.

Connect me to hope-thirsty minds,
turn on the flow from Your Spirit
and keep hope flowing through me
till fresh new life germinates
in receptors' lives
and overflows still further
from them into others' lives.


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