(our theme for September)

Today’s scripture is found in Romans 15:13, reading from the New Living Translation.

This verse is found near the end of the book of Romans and even though it is not quite the end of the chapter, it still sounds like a doxology or an expression of praise to God commonly expressed as believers go forth from worship into the community. Even though it is only two sentences, there is a lot packed into these words.

The first important part is recognizing that God is the source of our hope. Hope cannot be seen, but it certainly can be felt and as we grow in our relationship with God, hope becomes a very strong and real expression of our faith and feelings. I really like where the scripture goes from here, acknowledging that God, the source of our hope will fill me completely, yes completely, with joy and peace. I want that complete feeling of joy and peace as I go through life and this verse says I can have it because I trust in God.

The second sentence only gets better. We move from being filled completely with joy and peace to overflowing with confident hope. If you think about it, there is a significant transition here between these sentences. The shift is from me being completely filled, a very personal thing, to me overflowing which is going to impact those other people around me. My hope can overflow to them and if they don’t understand my joy and peace, I can share the good news with them (the Gospel) about the source of my hope coming from God and his love for each of us. And there is one more promise in these words, that this will all be done with the power of the Holy Spirit. It is the Holy Spirit that guides us and gives us the words when we don’t know what to say. So, the hope that fills us not only comes from God, not by my efforts, but it is a gift from God with the help of the Holy Spirit.

Romans 15:13 would be a great verse to commit to memory but it can also be easily paraphrased to be remembered.

Father, God, we thank you for these simple words of assurance that give us an understanding of the power of prayer, the promise of joy and peace, and an overflowing of hope to share with those you place in my path. Come Holy Spirit and guide us. Amen

This devotion was written and recorded by Owen Ragland.

If these words have a special meaning to you, please consider sharing them with a friend.

Grace for All is a daily devotional podcast produced by the members of the congregation of First United Methodist Church in Maryville, Tennessee. With these devotionals, we want to remind listeners on a daily basis of the love and grace that God extends to all human beings, no matter their location, status, or condition in life.

If you would like to respond to these devotionals in any way, we would enjoy hearing from you. Our email address is: podcasts@1stchurch.org.

First United Methodist Church is a lively, spirit-filled congregation whose goal is to spread the message of love and grace into our community and throughout the world. We are located on the web at https://1stchurch.org/.