TOPIC: Hope
REFERENCES: Proverbs 13:12, Hebrews 6:10-12 (The Message), 2 Corinthians 11:26-28, Romans 15:4, Jeremiah 29:11, Titus 2:13, Hebrews 10:23
SERIES: The Church with an Attitude | Part 4

SUMMARY
What is it you hope for most? A slimmer body? Fatter paycheck? New lover? Old flame? Improved golf game? Canceled debt? World peace? Warmer reception? Cool million? A smarter president? A dumber date?

Sometimes we use the word hope as being synonymous with the word wish. When we say, “I hope,” what we are really saying is, “I wish.” When our hope is inappropriately placed, it doesn’t matter how much I hope, that’s not going to bring me fulfillment. And I’ll be disappointed, disillusioned, and maybe even depressed. One question you need to ask yourself is, “Am I placing my hope in an inappropriate subject?”

There have been times in my life where I have lost hope because I feared that I had somehow disappeared from God’s radar screen. I felt like my circumstances at times have caught God off guard. Frequently, I need to be reminded that God not only knows my circumstances but He is what Oswald Chambers calls “the engineer” of my circumstances. Sometimes we are disappointed when our expectations are not met by our circumstances. When this happens, we can do one of two things, we can change our circumstances or we can change our expectations. The bible clearly teaches that to have hope does not mean the absence of problems. And therefore to say I hope I don’t have any more problems is not a legitimate hope.

Listen to this sermon to find out what the Bible says we can legitimately hope for.

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