Category Archives: General

Extrapolation

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One of the common points of division in the body of Christ, from my own experience, has been theological extrapolation. Calvinists don’t get along with Arminians because of the extrapolation from what is written in the Bible. Don’t get me wrong, logic is important, but it isn’t the be-all, end-all of hermeneutics. You see, if you have only some of the facts, content, culture, history, language understanding and you start to form doctrines you can come up with some errant ideas because you have started to fill in the ‘blanks’ [even if they weren’t blank, but you didn’t study] with something else that you have brought about by deduction. When you have some ideas that work for you, it is probably a great idea to pursue discussions with mature believers and seek out wisdom. Homogeny isn’t always the most important thing (truth is!), but others who have studied a topic may be able to point you towards some verses that will help you in your studies and find a fuller understanding of what the scriptures say on a subject.  Homogeny can also be dangerous because a whole group has agreed on something but not looked into it.  That being said, discussion with other believers is critical.

When you study God’s word there is a term for inserting your own meanings into a text, its called eisegesis (pronounced like ice o’ Jesus, which is probably what Martha was getting when she complained about Mary listening).  It is important to know what the scriptures say and to apply consistent hermeneutics for this very reason.  If you look at a text and are forcing your own modern context and ideas on the text, you’re not learning from God’s word, you’re changing it.  That’s not extrapolation, but its not useful time with the Bible.

What is Scream Apparatus?

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Scream Apparatus is the name that I have for my pretend band.  It came from those word refrigerator magnets.  Someone put them together and they have been in my mind since then.

I will be posting music up here as I have time to record it.  Which may not be all that often, but it doesn’t hurt to have something in place.

Please, Please,Please use alternative Text in HTML Email

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If you’re like me you have subscribed to various email lists or advertising newsletters from specific company. You want to know about specific airfares when they’re being offered that may allow you to travel to destination X for a low rate. You also want to know when your next credit card payment is due. You get the emails from the companies and your modern email client (mine is Thunderbird) blocks the external images because they’re sometimes used by spammers to track legit email addresses. The blocked images, if they don’t have alternative text, give you the broken image symbol in the email and the ‘buy now’ link is just a broken image and nothing indicates that you should be able to take advantage of the lower fares from within the email. In essence their whole plan to draw you in has failed miserably because they have failed to do something that is so simple that even spammers have figured it out.

Please use Alternative Text

What do the links above go to in the original email? I can’t tell. And if I was blind or visually impared and wanted a screen reader to tell me what they go to? Tough. SilverPOP, the service that sent this email out doesn’t care about its customers enough to actually put in descriptive words that would tell me what those links go to.
Now with images

Thunderbird adds a button to show the images in the email when it has blocked the images. However, it is possible that the images contain text that a screen reader will still not see. This is the kind of stuff that would be easy to do, and add value to the email for EVERY user who has images blocked, a restrictive proxy server, visual imparement and or the email composer forgot to link to an external image and the URL is broken.

Think twice and add alternative image text, it could be effecting your bottom line!

Nothing is Too Great for God to Do. Nothing is Too Great for You to Do.

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The title of this post is not quite a double-entendre.  The concept that I was thinking about was that God is all powerful and is limited only in the positive sense of His character.  That is to say that He cannot do evil things, but He can love with his pure, infinite, perfect love.  However, the ‘Nothing is too great for you to do,’ part of this title is actually the crux of the issue: we, as humans, want to do a whole lot.  Doing nothing kills us.  Which is a good thing.  God wants us to rest in Him, but instead we often want to be active and eager about doing something.

Is doing nothing too great for you?  If God’s word tells us to rest in Him, His works, His plan, and trust Him to conform us to the image of His Son, why do we find that rest to be such a challenge?  Is it because we want to prove something?  Do we want to prove God’s done something in us?  If so, the rest should be our reaction, the world does something as a reaction, our reaction to God’s powerful work in us should be doing nothing of the flesh and resting in our relationship with the Holy Spirit.  This doesn’t mean we won’t ever appear to be doing things outwardly, but it does mean that we’ll be doing things because inwardly the Holy Spirit has prompted us.

Ephesians 2:10 tells us that we will be doing good works that God has planned ahead for us to do.  Those are sure-fire winners.  Guaranteed gold for the rewards crowns we can look forward to heaven.  It means that I don’t have to sit around wondering if I’ll do those things, I can ‘sit around’, instead, resting.  Nothing is too great for me to do in the flesh, but the only thing I should be doing in the flesh if I’m walking in the direction and constant relationship of the Holy Spirit.  Because those works are not too great for God!

Fundamentals for Maturity

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As I’ve grown in my walk with the Lord there are a list of concepts that I have found to be revolutionary and rooting in my walk:

  1. Identificaion Truths
  2. Positional Truths
  3. Abiding
  4. Hermeneutics
  5. Understanding of Covenants and Dispensations

Identification Truths
This is the concept that is presented strongly in Romans 6 and various other places confirm and expound on the idea that we were identified with Christ in His crucification, death, burial and resurrection. We were identified with Christ and so we therefore are not slaves to sin. We still will sin due to our bodies being strapped to the sin nature but that is why Paul writes that we should reckon our bodies dead. Instead of focusing on the flesh we should set our minds on the things above (Colossians 3:1-3).

Positional Truths
This is the concept that my position is in Christ. Right now I’m hidden with Christ (Colossians 3 again) and no matter what I do in this human body I am baptized into Christ and cannot be seperated from Him. My relationship with Christ should be consuming and not my keeping track of my condition. My condition is what I’m experiencing now on the earth. My position is perfect in Christ due to my identification with Him, but my condition can at times not match my position. However, as we walk in fellowship with Christ we will have our condition match our position. This is the process of sanctification, there is no hindrance to our sanctification we will be conformed to the image of Christ, even if we have ‘Jonah’ moments where we walk in the flesh and try to walk away. Ephesians 2:10 says that God has good works planned for us, which means that even if he needs to bring about a large fish to relocate us, get a donkey to talk to us, or bring us to the bottom of things in our condition, He is sanctifying our lives and conforming us to the image of Christ!

Abiding in Christ
Instead of trying to figure out what righteousness looks like in a to-do list fashion we should be focusing on our relationship with Christ. This guarantees us a righteous walk and that we will exceed any set of rules or laws that we may be able to construct. Instead of trying to live down to laws, which only put us into bondage, we need to abide in Christ (see John 15) and this will produce the fruit of Christ in our lives. Don’t get distracted by junk that you can do, but instead be focused on Christ who will do pure and rewardable things in your life!

Hermeneutics
This is a consistent and methodical approach to reading and understanding scripture. Inconsistancy in interpretation is one of the major reasons that there are differences in believer’s theology (that’s a rather obvious statement, sorry). Paul tells us that we need to be united in our doctrine and I think that one of the big issues that I see today in the church is that we don’t recognize that the author of scripture (the Holy Spirit) had one intended meaning for what He inspired through the human writers. I have written about hermeneutics before, you can read it here.

Understanding of Covenants and Dispensations
Understanding the major sections of scripture and the agreements God made with mankind helped me get a feel for the plan of God for the world. Understanding the Noahic covenant was critical in grasping God’s plan for grace, capital punishment, God’s provision for eating meat, and God’s faithfulness in not destroying the world with another flood. Then you learn about Abraham’s covenant, which is really God’s covenant with himself to Abraham and his descendents. After that you learn about God’s covenant with Israel, God’s covenant with David and then the New Covenant in Jeremiah. Grasping these covenants, seeing who they relate to, when they relate to and how they fit into the timeline of scripture is awesome and something I suggest every believer study and grow in.

From there you can grow in many, many areas because of God’s word being so amazing, but those things really helped me grasp my relationship with God and helped me understand the Bible more wholely. Reading scripture (or listening) and understanding what your reading makes it easier to grow as well as discern when others are teaching law or mis-understanding God’s word because you know what it means with certainty because you have a consistent method and a broader knowledge of the Bible.

Resting in Him,

Randy Peterman

I’ve Been Transfered, Thankfully

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In Colossians 1:12-14 Paul writes of our position being transfered from a domain of darkness to a domain of light:

giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified us to share in the inheritance of the saints in Light. For He rescued us from the domain of darkness, and transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.
(Colossians 1:12-14)

This passage is in the middle of a recording of a prayer that Paul regularly prays for (at the very least) the church in Collosae [starting in verse 9]. Paul has already prayed for their spiritual growth and for their walk to be maturing, but then he gives thanks to God for a list of important things: God’s qualification of us to be sons (and daughters) that we might be inheriters of God’s Holiness. Paul continues to be thankful for our having been transferred from the domain of sin, the flesh and ultimately being children of Satan to being in the domain of Christ (how just happens to be our redeemer). Paul’s last bit of thankfulness is tied to our redemption in that we can be thankful for the forgiveness of sins.

In short I think there are several applications of this passage, but one that really stands out is that due to God’s work we are set aside into His Holiness so no matter what we do, we have God’s holiness that surrounds us. Since we have that holiness, since we have our sins forgiven we need to walk in that holiness, but if we somehow fail to walk in that then we need to not dwell in guilt, shame and self flagilation, and instead we need to return to our focus on God and His Holiness. We are transfered and the legal documents required of us to be heirs is done, signed, sealed and official. You can’t undo your salvation and God’s grace is completely sufficient. He’s not looking at your forgiven sins, why would you?

How Do You Pray?

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I have been really impressed with the idea that we often pray the wrong prayers. Sure, now you’re thinking that I’m making up rules about how you should pray, which I’m not, but I’m going to ask you to pray with doctrinal soundness. That is to say when you pray, don’t ask the Lord to do something that he’s already done. For example, I just heard the pastor of Mars Hill, a church in Seattle, pray, “… for this to be made possible that you would send us you’re Holy Spirit….**” Here’s the kicker, the thing that drives me crazy when I hear this sort of prayer: The Holy Spirit has come, has entered our lives and is indwelling believers right now as a secured seal until the day when we are taken up in the rapture to get our new bodies. Praying for the Holy Spirit to come is like asking God to make your body with about 70% water – it’s done!

When we pray we need to not pray for our weakness to be turned into strength, but instead that we may reflect His strength in our flesh being dead – our life is in Christ, when we live that life, we have the strength of Christ living and working in us. Instead of wrestling with the flesh, hoping that it would be conformed to the image of Christ, instead pray that you would moment by moment reckon the flesh as dead (Romans 6:11). God has promised in Romans 8:29 and Philipians 1:6 that you will be conformed to the image of Christ. Positionally, since you have been identified with Christ in his death, burial, resurrection, ascention, seating and are now hidden in Him (Colossians 3:3).

So, when you pray, the power of your prayer is not that you proclaim your weakness and need for His strength and working in your life, but instead it is the power of His life working in you and your reckoning or applying what He says is already true of you. I’m not talking about ‘word of faith’ type teaching that is full of selfish name-it-and-claim-it stuff, but instead that your attitude towards your life [which is His life, really] is from His perspective and that you take what God has revealed about your newness in Him as a given. This allows us to take into account for nasty things like suffering and trials and see them as lessons for our own growth (Hebrews 12:1-13).

What I’m writing is not an easy shift, but it is one that comes with an understanding of God’s word and the true life of the believer. The flesh wants control, it wants us to pray for its reformation because if it can be reformed then its not dead. I can pray that I would stop doing what is sinful, or I can pray that the Lord would help me identify where I’m letting the flesh creep into my thinking instead of reckoning it as dead. As we learn to see life from God’s perspective it allows us to grab hold of situations and see the lesson rather than having been grabbed hold of by a situation and ripped apart having learned nothing.

I am involved with a few situations currently that are frustrating me, but in their resolution I’m seeking God’s perspective. Maybe there is no resolution because there doesn’t need to be resolution yet because I’ve still got things to learn. But whatever learning there is to do, I’m looking forward to it because I know that God has a plan for my growth that will work in tandem with my life situations so that I will be praying His will, proving His will (Romans 12:2), and showing others God’s will by His life through me. It’s exciting stuff and it makes me want to pray for whomever reads this that the Lord would draw you to His word for inspiration in your prayers and insite into His character in you.

**This quote is from their podcast dated from 01/23/2006, Pastor Mark Driscoll.

Burned Out By Christianity

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Christians often get burned out or burned or hurt at churches. I myself have left three churches in my lifetime (one as a child of my parents, though not any less painful than the two I left as an adult). There are three paths that a burned, burned out or hurt Christian can choose to take:

  1. Give up
  2. Try again
  3. Learn & Grow

I think it is important to note that I have met people whom I believe have taken these paths or have taken them myself. I have actually, at one stage or another done all three, but when I say ‘give up I’m referring to a ‘final call’ type of give up, not just a ‘give up for a while’ type. Let me clarify the scenarios so as to not leave any confusion.

Give Up
The Give Up is when someone has gone to one or more churches, seen that others are unable to live what they’re being taught (or bring into the church – this can be dangerous, frankly), get burned out or hurt and then give up on Church all together. Often this is accompanied with a proclamation that Christianity is a farse or that a person can’t ‘do’ Christianity. However, that last statement is a generalization and should not be applied to all ‘give up’ people. In short instead of continuing on in pursuit of a better or healthy church or digging deeper into God’s word to find out what it says a better or healthy church is the person quits while they’re ahead because they can only see failure in the churches in their town, county, state, country and world. Granted there is a limitation to the number of miles you can walk, drive or fly to go to church and participate in the body of Christ. When we gave up going to church for a while in Texas we had driven 45 miles to try to find a church and come up short. Going to any of the churches’ meetings that far away outside of Sunday morning was nearly impossible due to traffic.

The problem often in many cases is that the burned out believer has not gone to God’s word. God’s word is not the final authority in their life and so they may have wrong expectations, not be able to discern what a strong (mature) believer looks like, or be able to see that we are not to abandon the fellowship of the believers.  God’s word teaches us about grace, which is a significant element in what we look for in the church – sanctification by its very definition means that no church has arrived!  We look for signs of health and pray for opportunities to help edify the body where the Lord opens doors.

Try Again
The Try Again person is one who says, “I’ve been burned or hurt, but there’s got to be a better church out there.” This person goes to another church hoping that it is better. This approach may lead people on a ‘steeple chase’ (reference: Steve Taylor song) where they skip from church to church hoping to find one ‘just right.’ This may also be the ‘Goldilocks’ approach where we find ones that make us too uncomfortable with either legalism or liberalism, music preferences, emotional feelings and general ‘felt needs’ problems. This approach, too, is not biblically based in many cases. The problem is that the person may not have gone to God’s word for deeper understanding of what the church is about, what a believer’s life is to be like, and what is important in a church for (growing) believers. It is possible for a person to be blessed to find a church where there is growth, but it is the exception and not the rule.

Learn & Grow
The learn and grow person gets hurt or burned and then goes to God’s word, boldly approaching the throne of God seeking God’s wisdom (James 1:5), prayerfully going to new churches after checking doctrinal statements ahead of time when possible [if your church does not have a clear and relatively broad doctrinal statement covering a wide variety of doctrines, ask those in charge for an update that clarifies your church’s positions, it may make or break the visitor’s search].  Understand that all sorts of things will come into your life for you to grow from.  You are being conformed to the image of Christ and that’s a significant place to be.  No church will be perfect, but you look for the strongest possible body and then get involved.

Conclusion
I did not understand any of these principles and I did not see their greater implication in my life.  This doesn’t just fit into looking for a church, it applies to a broad array of areas: 1) diagnose the real problem 2) figure out how you should really respond 3) learn and grow.  If you quit or repeat your folly you’ll just get frustrated.

Romans 8:28-30

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I have been reading, studying and thinking (meditating) about Romans 8:28-30 recently. While I don’t think I’ve sucked every bit out of the passage I have found it to be full of ideas that blow the status quo of Christianity out of the water. Don’t settle for less if you’re a believer. Anything less is just an imitation of Christ, and we don’t need that. Here’s the text:

And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose. For those whom He foreknew, He also predestined to become conformed to the image of His Son, so that He would be the firstborn among many brethren; and these whom He predestined, He also called; and these whom He called, He also justified; and these whom He justified, He also glorified.

I have heard the first part of verse 28 out of context lots of times, and its not done anyone who is quoting it or listening to it out of context much good. Granted, I’m taking these three verses out of Romans 8, which you need to read in context. Romans 8:28 starts with God’s causing all things to work together for good to those who love God. God is the one who’s in charge, not me. When something happens that seems unjust or unfair instead of asking why (which the answer will be because mankind is corrupt and in desperate need of a savior) we should be asking when will the justice be corrected. Then, immediately afterward we should ask, “What can I learn from this because God is using it for my benefit?” When what looks like garbage happens in my life, including my sinning, God can still use it for His good. He can still use it to His glory.

I used to look at pornography with as much frequency as possible (Mom, I know you read this, don’t beat yourself up for this, God has used it to His glory, seriously) when I was younger. I was addicted to the fleshly feeling of lust. I wanted more and more exposure to sexual things because the emotional feeling was exciting. It wasn’t satisfying, but it was exciting. Then, afterward I would feel guilt for looking at such things. Fortunately I’m not alone in this wrestling of the flesh so when I come across other youth or men I am able to offer them hope and empathy. I am able to take them to places and scripture that lead them to a better understanding of who they are in Christ and how that can help them cease walking in the flesh and live in victory over the flesh. God has been able to take what was a past sin, and use it as one of my very ministries! Instead of my living righteously for my whole life I have constantly wrestled with various sins so that now I can understand my brothers and sisters in Christ and be an edifying member of the body.

But God doesn’t stop there. You see, when you sin, God has covered it in the blood of Christ and you are instead accredited with the righteousness of Christ so God is given glory for His grace, mercy and love even in our sin (which was His sin on the cross). So not only is the event possible to be used by God, but he gets the glory for what happens no matter what. That beats the snot out of any sort of guilt, shame or punishment for our sins, plus it gives us a glimpse into God’s perspective. You cannot be in a situation that God cannot use in your life. Period.

Some look at that verse and say, “But it says those who love God.” And then get off on a high horse about how some people, when they sin do not love God. Not loving God while you sin does not mean that you don’t love God at all, does it? Don’t sell someone a shorted check of Grace. Either Christ died for all of our sins (which we’ll look at in a moment) or he didn’t. God can use events in our lives for His glory now, later or in eternity… don’t limit an infinite God to your puny perspective. I’m learning that I need to quit trying to short sell God in this very area.

Then, the hum-dinger of Romans 8:28, the second part, comes out: Because we love God, we’re called according to His purpose. Instead of lacking purpose in life, instead of not having a calling, we’re called to God’s purpose. What purpose can be better than that? When earthly things take place they’re usable by God for our good, His glory and we are called and can be used for His purpose! Though it is in an Old Testament context Jonah was walking in the sin and selfishness [ha ha, the word fish is in the middle of that word, get it? Jonah? Fish?], then did God’s will through the help of a fish, and then walked in the selfishness again with the plant but God used Jonah for His purpose. Paul died, was resurrected, was lashed, shipwrecked, tortured, homeless, and naked (See II Corinthians 11:23-27). All of those to God’s glory for God’s purpose. Paul could not write with such authority if he had not been associated with Steven’s murder, and then once establishing His relationship with Christ, turning around and being involved with all sorts of physical hardships in Christ’s service. Instead, God used those things to validate Paul’s ministry and Paul knew it. Instead of finding sorrow in those things he knew they were part of his sanctification and growth. On top of that he knew that God had eternity in store of him, in which God would forever be revealing Himself to Paul and all believers (Ephesians 2:4-7).

God has a purpose for our lives and so being distracted by this world and trying to reconcile this world with the flesh is only going to lead to disappointment instead of having a perspective that looks at God’s working in our lives for His glory, our growth and with His purpose. We are called to God’s purpose… there is meaning to life. On top of that Ephesians 2:10 says that we’re going to walk in the good works that God has planned for us. We cannot fail to do God’s planned works for us, they’re predestined.

Verse 29 starts out with God’s foreknowledge of us: “For those whom He foreknew….” God knew us in eternity past. Intimately. He didn’t just know me, Randy Peterman, a little bit, He didn’t just know all about my musical talent [or lack there of], he didn’t just know I’d know how to program computers or that I’d live to be [insert the age I live to be here], but he knew me intimately, 100%. What’s so amazing about that? Several things: God knew me and still He chose to die for my sins on the cross. God knew me and still planned for me to do good works. God knew me and is going to reward me for those good works he has planned for me no matter how many beautiful women (that he created) I defiled by lusting after them. He knew me, knew how I would screw up with my wife, children and anyone else I’m involved with and still died for me on the cross. That’s what’s so amazing about that. God foreknew me and loved me anyway. That’s love.

Beyond foreknowing me He also, “…predestined to [me] become conformed to the image of His Son…” So not only did He know me and promise to pay for my sins, but he also promised to sanctify me, or set me aside to be conformed to and identified with His Son, Christ. I don’t have to worry about whether I will one day be a godly (godlier) man, I know that Christ is my position (Colossians 3:3), but also my destination when I’m with God in the heavenlies. My sanctification (spiritual growth) is guaranteed. There is nothing else so liberating in life than to know that you don’t have to try any more, because God’s doing it and He’s conforming you to the image of His Son. The world sometimes practices self mutilation wherein they carve or manipulate their flesh. By trying in the flesh to live a righteous life we are simply doing the same thing inwardly. Instead we must rest in God’s work and walk in our relationship with Him, it will guarantee results rather than bring them into question because of a faulty source (the flesh). We’re predestined: it is our destiny. That predestination is so that Christ would be the first-born of the brethren. Christ would be the first to be resurrected and we will follow in Him and have eternal life. God uses our Christ-conformance to His glory in many ways, including Christ being glorified as the first-born.

As if being foreknown, predestined to be conformed to Christ image and bringing Christ (and therefore God) glory, we are called with a purpose (again, reiterating what was written in verse 28). But those whom God called he also justified. That’s a past tense word there. I have been justified. I have been made just in God’s sight. When he looks at me He sees a Randy that has no sin or blemish on him. He sees the resurrection of Christ in me. I am made just. As has been said before, “Justified, its just as if I’d never sinned at all.” And I’ve sinned, let me tell you. But I don’t have to worry about it because Christ took care of it. The worldly concern for sin and the flesh is not my concern because mine has already been taken care of and is being conformed to the image of Christ! I can stop worrying about doing righteous deeds in the flesh since the flesh is dead and my new life in Christ is inherently filled with righteousness.

Beyond justification I am also glorified. I’m going to confess to not having grasped all that glorification means. It is hard for my mind to wrap itself around my being glorified. God being glorified is understandable, but I have been glorified. A past tense word, again. Second Corinthians 3:18 says it well: 18But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as from the Lord, the Spirit. We are being conformed to Him who is glorified, therefore we are glorified as well. What an amazing thing that all of this is true of every believer. It makes me want to be more gracious with other believers who are not aware of this so that they may see the truths of this lived out in me. Fortunately as I abide in Christ and rest in what God is doing in me He will do things like that through me.

What a rich passage this is. I suppose much more could be drawn from it, but as I live I learn places that this (and many other verses) apply to me. Furthermore, I am learning how they apply in different areas and scenarios. I find myself looking at trials, past since, present since, and future growth with hope. All of it, every single bit of my life can be used for God’s glory and my good. I can’t ask for more than that.

Hope

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My new daughter’s middle name is Hope. I have often discounted this practical theological principle since hope is not in something that is tangible now. I’m rather narrow minded in this regard, I know that it is something that I need to allow the Lord to reshape my thinking on. One thing that I see specifically is that there is very little in my life that I do with an excitement and hope. Hope is critical for all life, but sometimes I think I want everything practical, right now, and ‘easy.’ That’s where God comes in 🙂

Romans 5:1-6 really puts things in perspective.

1 Therefore having been justified on the principle of faith, we have peace towards God through our Lord Jesus Christ;
2 by whom we have also access by faith into this favour in which we stand, and we boast in hope of the glory of God.
3 And not only [that], but we also boast in tribulations, knowing that tribulation works endurance;
4 and endurance, experience; and experience, hope;
5 and hope does not make ashamed, because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by [the] Holy Spirit which has been given to us:

I find this section of scripture to be stunning. It tells me that due to the shere fact of my salvation by faith I am to have hope, it will be part of what the Holy Spirit is doing in my life as He conforms me into the image of Christ. My lack of thinking about hope does not mean I’m not living with hope, its just an area of my life that I need to be submitting to him rather than just sitting back and saying, “Whatever happens will happen. God’s in control.” Instead I need to have the mindset that, “Whatever will happen will happen because God’s in control and I have access to God and can appeal to Him, His Power, and His Love to hopefully achieve something that is amazing.” Having faith in an all mighty God means that I can pray prayers that He would move the mountains and Hope in Him who can move mountains.

I’ve lost hope in people due to them failing me like I failed them (and trust me, I’ve failed a lot of people). However, I’m decieved if I lose hope in God. fortunately He reminded me about this by having me name my daughter Hope. I have high hopes for Evelyn Hope to become a godly woman. My hope is in God’s work, and not in my own as a man.