Our God of Hope

A precious woman I know delivers chemo care bags to encourage others who are facing that same battle.

Pages and pages of group texts with my dearest friends are filled with prayer requests, celebrations, and updates praising the Lord, each marking monumental moments in our many years of friendship.

A longtime friend asks for prayer support, as she faces one last conversation with a family member whom she may never see again.

These faithful women and I join millions of believers in Jesus across the globe from the past, present, and undoubtedly in the years to come, as we sing in unison, one single tune: We believe that Jesus is Lord, and our hope is found in Him alone.

This hope has been experienced and written about since the beginning of time. It is woven into the pages of scripture, and has been tested and proven, time and time again. Our Eternal, Heavenly Father created His perfect plan of hope since before time even began, and continues to orchestrate His glorious, unaltered love story until hope is fully fulfilled the days of mankind. 

Looking back to hope in the Past.

We’ve been gifted thousands of pages of scripture, capturing evidence of the existence of God’s promise of hope, and we are invited by our Heavenly Father to renew and strengthen our hope in Him as we spend intimate time with Him reading His love story.

Though each page within the bible captures many angles of this single hope, two parts of scripture most amazingly magnify it: God’s promise to defeat the enemy (first recorded in Genesis 3:15), and the defeat itself, as Jesus conquers death, and is resurrected victoriously (found throughout the gospel accounts – Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John). At this pivotal point in history, Christ changed everything. He declared victory over death (1 Corinthians 15:57), and perfectly illustrated God’s plan of hope and salvation through faith in Him alone.

Searching for hope in the Present.

As we open our eyes and see the world as God sees it, hope can be found all around us today! Hardened hearts between fathers and sons are being softened. Marriages are being reconciled. Believers are becoming more aware of global injustices, and are rising up in action, as God calls them. The Gospel is spreading like wildfire in severely persecuted areas of our world, just as it did in New Testament times (Acts 11:19-24). Miracles that can only be explained as orchestrated by God, are evident everywhere. Ultimately, God’s glory shines through thousands upon thousands stories of redemption and restoration, each pointing toward our hope, centered on Christ.

We who follow the Lord, are called to let the light of God shine out of the darkness, to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ (2 Corinthians 4:6). In other words, we get to be participants in the sharing of hope, and the lighting of the dark! We get to witness those moments of redemption, as those whose eyes were once closed, become unveiled as God pursues them, and places hope in Him deep within their hearts.

We are called to be steadfast in our hope (1 Thessalonians 1:3), to be dedicated, and to be constant in professing the perfect love and truth that can only be found in Jesus. We are called to love earnestly and serve one another (1 Peter 4:8-10), to go where God calls us (Jeremiah 1:7-8), and to glorify Him in all that we do (1 Peter 4:11), so that others may witness and experience this hope that God has revealed to us.

Leaning confidently toward hope in the Future.

One beautiful day, the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a cry of command, with the voice of an archangel, and with the sound of the trumpet of God. And on that day, those of us who are believers, and are alive here on earth, will meet the Lord in the air (1 Thessalonians 4:16-17), joining angels and believers who have passed on from this earth, in praising and worshipping our perfect God forevermore.

I picture that beautiful day, as the creation itself will be liberated from its bondage to decay, and brought into the freedom and glory of the children of God (Romans 8:21). How perfectly restored God’s creation will be!

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This promise of hope, brought into existence by the Creator of everything, and pulled straight from the pages of scripture, is the very reason we, who believe in the Living God, continue faithfully devoting our lives to Him.

We believe that Jesus is Lord, and our hope is found in Him alone.

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*Persimmon’s new ‘Hope Tee’ design is based on the promise of hope, a hope that our Heavenly Father wants us to experience and enjoy. The floral design is based on the beautiful, perfect restoration of creation, mentioned in Romans 8:21, and the cursive, hand-drawn ‘hope’ graphic points to Romans 5:2, which promises that through Jesus, we have obtained access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and rejoice in hope in the glory of God. Sewn by our friends atWork + Shelter in Delhi, India, this garment represents hope by supporting fair wages, encouraging ethically conscious consumerism, and global economic development. 

 

KACIE FEENEY lives in the Chicago area with her husband, Patrick, and their two malti-poo pups, Lucy and Rosey. The Lord led their family to pursue creating Persimmon Prints, after facing a miscarriage and turning their eyes to His greater plan. You can connect with her & Persimmon on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter!