The Anointed dwelling in you is the very hope of glory. Colossians 1:27 Voice
HOPE WINS when you realize that you can rest in the anointing of the Holy Spirit of your life to reveal hope in your life and to display the glory of God especially in the broken places of your life.
It had been one of those days. Have you ever had one of those days — you know, the kind where you feel overwhelmed and unable to cope. I was exhausted and not ready to deal with everyone’s problems. I wasn’t dealing well with my own. As I wept tears of anger and discouragement I was reminded of this scripture. If Jesus is living in me – and He is because of his death and resurrection – I not only have hope but also glory. Oh, sure, I knew that one day I would make it to Heaven and all that stuff and that sounded like glory to me, but what about today and what I was feeling?
Context
Colossians is a Pauline epistle or letter written to the church there. Some dispute whether Paul wrote it yet it definitely follows his approach so even if he did not, one of his disciples did. Colossae was located about 100 miles from Ephesus and was on a busy trade route from East to West. The church was made up mainly of Gentiles who lived in a tough place where there were many conflicting religious elements and worldly influences. The church was mainly made up of Gentile believers who were facing some pretty serious doctrinal issues especially in light of the pagan culture that surrounded them. (Hmmm…. sound familiar?) They had received the grace of Christ in salvation yet were being attacked with false claims of mysticism and sensationalism. They needed a reminder of what Christ had done for them and who they were in Christ.
Starting with Prayer
This first chapter of Colossians contains one of my very favorite prayers (Colossians 1:10-14) to pray over myself and everyone I love. Here are the verses in The Voice translation with blanks for you to enter your name or the name of someone who needs to move into more light and fulness of who they are in Christ (and I think that’s all of us):
“Heavenly Father, I ask you that ____________ may clearly know Your will and achieve the height and depth of spiritual wisdom and understanding. May their life be a credit to You, Lord; and what’s more, may they continue to delight You by doing every good work and growing in the true knowledge that comes from being close to You. Strengthen them with Your infinite power, according to Your glorious might, so that they will have everything they need to hold on and endure hardship patiently and joyfully. Thank You, Father, as You have made us eligible to receive our portion of the inheritance given to all those set apart by the light. You have rescued us from dark powers and brought us safely into the kingdom of Your Son, whom You love and in whom we are redeemed and forgiven of our sins [through His blood].”
Hope Leads to Glory
When we see ourselves in our own strength we can get discouraged. This is where we must come to recognize that we can be more when Jesus is the source and foundation of all hope. It is His unchanging constancy that gives you the confident expectation that tomorrow will be even better than today. In this one verse, we can see where the source of hope comes – in Christ. Your life changes when you start walking in hope. Recognizing the awesome truth of hope will lead you to a different quality of life. Can you expect to feel glory here on this earth? There is no doubt that part of this verse refers to the glory of Heaven. We can all agree on that one. The hard part is to allow the glory of God to show through the broken parts of my life. I tend to run to hide and pretend that all is well because if you really knew me, you probably wouldn’t like me. Here’s the real glory. As you share your struggles with me and I let you in on how I feel sometimes, there is a shine of excellence and dignity. We are in this together! There is true weight in transparency and openness that melts the walls separating us.
HOPE WINS!
Prayer
Thank You, Lord, for all those who are praying for me. Thank You for surrounding me with friends that keep be accountable in loving and generous ways. I thank you that I don’t have to hide and pretend that all is well when it is not. I am grateful! Give me grace to extend this same transparencies to others so they will also learn that You are our source of glory and life. In Jesus’ name. Amen.
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Author, speaker, corporate trainer, ordained minister and Hope Catalyst, Karen Sebastian enjoys sharing her rich life experiences with others – engaging them in adventurous discoveries of the beauty of hope in a dark, cloudy world. Her books will inspire you to embrace hope no matter what you are going through.
