Hope Tested, Father Approved

Hey everyone, after a recent Bible study on "hope," I created a test of Hope for us. Ok, please put your Bibles away and keep your eyes on your own lives. You may begin.

True of False: 
1. Fulfillment in life does not hinge on our circumstances.
2. Paul discovered that the “secret” to contentment was not found in things, but in a Person.
3. God’s grace is sufficient during adversity.
4. Paul discovered that God’s power is most evident when we are weak.
5. God’s grace is more than sufficient for anything we will encounter.
6. The key to maintaining hope through adversity is to view it as suffering for Christ’s sake.
7. Like Paul’s mission in life, yours is to glorify God through spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ

When it comes to our health specifically, God wants all the attention. God is the "God of hope" and He delivers all the hope we need when we invite Him into our hearts. I have trouble wrapping my head around that. As believers, we've never had more hope than we do at this very moment. (What's easier for me to grasp is the fact that I don't have faith in it.) Truth is, at any given moment of the day, you can find me feeling hopeless about my spine, or my colon issues, or this ministry, or finances, or my future, or...or...my colon issues. (Twice - yes - don't I know it.)

What about you? Do you find it tough not to focus on circumstances or things? What about during adversity or when you feel weak? But aren't we blessed, that despite our challenges - when hope is tested - God gets all the attention. I suppose it's one way to remember that God is near and we can have the "peace that surpasses our understanding"(Phil 4:7). Hope will do that. (Every time.)

-Jimmy Peña

For Discussion: How did you do on the test? What's the one area where perhaps - while you believe all the points above to be TRUE - you feel less than hopeful? Talk to me.