Springing Hope

Colossians 1:
5 the faith and love that spring from the hope that is stored up for you in heaven and that you have already heard about in the word of truth, the gospel 6 that has come to you. All over the world this gospel is bearing fruit and growing, just as it has been doing among you since the day you heard it and understood God's grace in all its truth. 7 You learned it from Epaphras, our dear fellow servant, who is a faithful minister of Christ on our behalf, 8 and who also told us of your love in the Spirit.

What is the root of working ‘by the will of God’, and love for ALL the saints? It comes “from the faith and love that spring from the hope that is stored up for you in heaven…” We serve out of the awareness and gratitude of what is already ours, and yet, lies before us. I struggle some with the ‘what lies ahead’. If you’re like me, you’re kind of an ‘immediate’ person. I’ve always had a hard time being patient and waiting.
Additionally, our understanding of Heaven is vague. It’s a nice place we’re sure, and we all want to go there – usually at some point much further down the road, but at this point it’s an intangible. I’ve never seen it, nor have I talked to anyone directly who has been there and back. And if the truth be told, I kinda like it here – I’m not facing death or persecution, I’m not starving, I gotta good family wife, kids, motorcycle -- It is not surprising then that we have a hard time really getting excited about the idea of Heaven, therefore, I may not be as strongly connected to the ‘hope that is stored up for…’ me as in reality I should or need to be. I have a lot of hope right where I am - comfortable. But, that is a pretty narrow, selfish and temporal perspective on life. Much of that can change in one heartbeat. Moreover it is an extremely poor understanding of the eternal HOPE that is both within me, and ahead. What we have stored up for us – as children of God is almost beyond our comprehension 1Co 13:12 For now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face; now I know in part, but then I will know fully just as I also have been fully known. This world is important, it does have opportunities, joys, and challenges, difficulties and despair – but it is only a dim mirror of what will be – even at its best. We need to spend time exploring the vast edges of our hope. As we serve we need to keep this in mind, every Child of God has this Hope of God in storage – it’s a sure thing. Thing about this as you serve persons with disabilities – God’s stored up hope is for all. Let us realize the beginnings of that hope now as we bring the presence of the Gospel into our Christian Horizons homes. Let us serve together in a way that anticipates and believes in our coming Hope. Let us be conduits of Gospel into the lives of the people whom we have been ordained to serve

Anyway I was just thinking.

Neil