Your Next Chapter: Hope Changes Everything!
Romans 15:13, Ezekiel 37:1-14, Acts 12:1-19
Definition: Hope that the future can be better than what it is now…and I can be part of making it happen.  It is not wishful thinking or optimism. Secular studies have shown the importance of hope in animals and in students in regard to their well-being.

Romans 5:13 NIV: “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.”  Another translation: abound in hope.
Ezekiel 37:1-14 tells the story of Ezekiel and the valley of dry bones. God asked Ezekiel if the bones could live again.   He told God that He alone knew.  Ezekiel did not believe the dry bones would live again.  How often do we also limit God?
1 Corinthians 13:13: “..now these three remain: faith, hope, and love. But the greatest of these is love.” Yes, love is the greatest but faith and hope are also listed.
Hebrews 11:1: “Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see.”   Where there is no hope, there is no faith.

Application:

Identify areas where you are struggling for hope. Seek God for deliverance. There are no hopeless situations, only hopeless people.
Remind yourself that hopelessness is a bigger problem than the problem itself. Let your life glisten with hope and do not believe the lies of the enemy.
Remember Who God is. Imagine what He is able to do as we trust and obey Him. Follow the example of Joseph and walk in hope. Don’t look at the current situation.
Surround yourself with people of hope. Hope begets hope.

Let us be people of hope…and a church of hope.