Romans 15:13 – May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.

Hope. What an awesome thing. We are charged with trusting in God, which is impossible without the hope that He will hear us and intervene in our lives. If we ask for His help, then have no hope He heard, we’ll get discouraged and stop asking. That isn’t His will for us. He says in His Word that we are to be persistent in our asking and unshakeable in our faith, but we can’t unless he fills us with hope. Hope opens the door for joy, and joy brings faith, and faith brings peace. Then we’re set up for hope again.

How do we get hope? As with everything else, we ask for it. God wants a relationship with us, and he wants to give us good things. If He were to give us those things without our asking though, we wouldn’t appreciate them. We would take them for granted and forget where they came from.

There are many things I pray for on a daily basis, and some more desperate than others. Yes, it’s okay to tell God you’re desperate. (He can tell.) I know a family in a desperate situation, and I’m blown away by the strength of their faith and hope. Their family motto is ‘God’s got this.’ And He does. The faith and hope I see in them encourages me to continue fighting and praying until the breakthrough comes.