Against All Hope

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. (Romans 4:18–21)

“Against all hope.” Those are interesting words. I have personally been in that place where the day to day seemed “against all hope,” a place and a season where hope seemed far off or absent? Many of you have been there or are there now. I have come to see that it is precisely in these times where the mystery of hope becomes a reality, since hope at times where everything is going well is in some ways not really needed. The questions come, “what does it look like to hope against hope.” “What does it look like if hope is not even imaginable and must be brought to you by others who have been given the grace to hope against hope.” 

This past Sunday at Creekside was Hope Sunday -- a time for each of us to take on the mantle of hope, to be bringers of hope to people living in hopelessness in Congo. We watched a video that gave us a glimpse of both the darkness and the opportunity, the hopelessness and the hope for Congo. In that video, Curt Peterson of Covenant World Mission says in the video, “I weep for the children who are on the edge of life and death. It is not their fault. And they have no power to get beyond that edge to safety. They are vulnerable, invisible and God calls us to the least of these.” I share those sentiments, I share that belief. 

At this moment, our church and our denomination have been given an amazing opportunity. Through our trust in God, our joining together and our partnership with World Vision we have the ability to actually bring hope -- tangible, practical, life saving hope -- to people, against all hope. We have the opportunity to enter into the sweet spot of God’s heart for the least, the lost and the left behind, to change the world and to be changed in the process. The gateway for us in doing this is child sponsorship. This past Sunday we were all given a picture of a child from this region and asked to pray about sponsoring them, to pray about the region and to pray about our partnership. Though we already sponsor a child, Kelly and I entered Sunday with the intention to sponsor one of these children. We left sponsoring two. 

How has God been speaking to you this process? What has he been saying? Ask that you might hear him. Think about what you hear.  Check out the Covenant and the World Vision sites. 

I hope that you will join me in sponsoring a child. In doing so you will both bless that child, but also enter a partnership of hope that is bigger than the individual children, but that comes to us through them.

Peace, hope and love

Doug