In the traditional and well-loved hymn, ‘All my hope on God is founded’, Joachim Neander (1650-80) declares,
All my hope on God is founded,
all my trust He shall renew;
He, my Guide through changing order,
only good and only true.
Hope is not wishful thinking; rather, hope is trust in God. Our hope lies in the unchangeable character of God, in His love and faithfulness. We have the promise that, in all the changes and seeming ‘chance’ of life, the providential Hand of God is at work:
‘For we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love Him, who have been called according to His purpose.’ (Romans 8:28)
The hymn continues,
Day by day our mighty Giver
grants to us His gifts of love;
in His will our souls find pleasure,
leading to our home above.
Our hope lies in the love and mercy of God, in His generous provision for our daily needs: physical, emotional and spiritual. Our confidence is found in the guidance and prompting of the Holy Spirit. God’s redeeming love gives us hope not only for this life but for the life to come.
‘... 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)
Still from man to God eternal
sacrifice of praise be done,
high above all praises praising
for the gift of Christ His Son.
‘We continually remember ... your work produced by faith, your labour prompted by love, and your endurance inspired by hope in our Lord Jesus Christ.’
(1 Thessalonians 1:3)
Let us pray:
Eternal God, our loving Heavenly Father, we praise You that Your precious word tells us that ‘we love, because You first loved us.’
We rejoice to know that You created us to experience Your love.
We acknowledge that You call us to respond to Your love by loving You and loving our neighbour as we love ourselves.
Our hope is in the knowledge that we could never earn, deserve or merit Your love and acceptance.
Help us, in our daily living, to share, by word and action, Your love with all whom we meet.
In the Name of our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ. Amen.
At this Advent season, we are reminded of the three-fold hope we have:
Christ, the Incarnate Son of God, came into the world over 2000 years ago to save us from sin and death. (1 John 4:10)
Christ comes to us in the present to live in our hearts. (Revelation 3:20 & Ephesians 3:16-19)
Christ is coming again to reign as King, and we know neither the day nor the hour of His return. (Matthew 25:42-44)
In light of such hope:
‘Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for He who promised is faithful. And let us consider how we may spur one another on towards love and good deeds.’ (Hebrews 10:23)
Alister Weighton
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