Hope That Is Not Seen Is Not Hope

This meditation is based on a passage for July 3, 2010 in the Daily Lectionary Year 2 from the Book of Common Worship for the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) (1993).

Text: Romans 8:18-25

Reflection and Question: Paul becomes poetic here as he moves to a new train of thought in Romans. He uses the image of a woman in labor to capture his sense of their present moment. And he admits that the faithful live in hope for what is not seen, not real, at that moment. How much more is this the case two thousand years later, as we continue to wait for the redemption of our bodies! In the end, though, a few years or a thousand years doesn’t matter. The important thing is that hope engenders patience and by such hope we shall be saved. How do you wait with patience for what you do not see?

Prayer: Beloved Jesus, Paul expected creation to be freed from its bondage of decay. He hoped to obtain the freedom of the glory of the children of God. Did he? May our hope save us. Give us patience and understanding of Your ways. Amen.