“Against all hope, Abraham in hope believed and so became the father of many nations, just as it had been said to him, “So shall your offspring be.” Without weakening in his faith, he faced the fact that his body was as good as dead—since he was about a hundred years old—and that Sarah’s womb was also dead. Yet he did not waver through unbelief regarding the promise of God, but was strengthened in his faith and gave glory to God, being fully persuaded that God had power to do what he had promised.”
When the world told Abraham not to hope, he hoped and believed that God would be God.
When Abraham’s mind and flesh told him not to hope, he believed God against all odds.
When his unbelief told Abraham not to hope, he believed God’s promise to him.
Just like Abraham, there are things God has promised us that we never have to question. (You might not be the father of many nations but there are different things that God has promised you and all of His children.) We can find these things in His Word.
He has promised us eternal life (read: 1 John 2:25). He has promised us a new heart (read: Ezekiel 36:26). He promised us forgiveness (read: Psalm 103:12). He has promised to provide for our needs (read: Matthew 6:31-34). He has promised us protection (read: Psalm 91:4-6). These promises are just as much for you as they are for me. Memorize them, take comfort in them, and live in the freedom that they give you!
As Abraham hoped that God would be good to him and fulfill His promise, Abraham’s faith was deepened because God did what He said He would do. We read later on in Romans “Suffering produces perseverance, and perseverance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us.” Abraham’s hope in God did not put him to shame.
I know that sometimes it can seem like a huge leap of faith to hope that God will be good to you and fulfill his promises. There may be that lingering fear that God won’t come through, that you’ll always feel this way and be like this. That’s the thing about faith though, all you need is faith as small as a mustard seed to move mountains. With each passing day you live out with that faith, your faith will grow just like Abraham’s did. So maybe your first step could be taking each of the promises mentioned above and focusing on really believing one a week. From there, ask God to give you new promises. Dive deeper into the Word and see what other promises He has given us. He’s good. He will never fail. He will never go back on His promises.
pray
Lord, we thank You that You are God. We thank You that against all hope, we get to hope in You. You are our Hope. I ask that You give us the grace to be people who let You be God over our lives. We ask that You would show us what it means for Your Promises to be fulfilled in our lives. We invite You to come and be God in every aspect of our every day. Amen.
– Allison Peden
