—Psalm 38:15
There's something to be said for hope. And, as I've said recently (see my morning devotion for May 4) waiting and hoping are closely tied together, both theologically and linguistically. To wait can be boring and tedious and angst-ridden. But to truly wait for God is active and hopeful. To understand the difference, compare a child waiting for Christmas to an adult in the waiting room of a surgery center.
In commenting on today's verse, John Calvin said, "Certainly, the human mind will never be framed to gentleness and meekness, nor will it be able to subdue its passions, until it has learned never to give up hope."
And isn't that a major part of life as a Christian? No matter what life throws at me, in the death and resurrection of Jesus, I am forever learning never to give up hope, for—and this is the Apostle Paul speaking—hope doesn't disappoint us, because God's love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit which was given to us.
In commenting on today's verse, John Calvin said, "Certainly, the human mind will never be framed to gentleness and meekness, nor will it be able to subdue its passions, until it has learned never to give up hope."
And isn't that a major part of life as a Christian? No matter what life throws at me, in the death and resurrection of Jesus, I am forever learning never to give up hope, for—and this is the Apostle Paul speaking—hope doesn't disappoint us, because God's love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit which was given to us.
—Romans 5:5
Help me, O God, to wait for you; help me never to surrender to despair. I pray this in the Name of Jesus Christ, who taught me to pray: Our Father...
