![]() They show us the heart of God-His faithfulness, goodness, grace, and mercy-and, yes, even His justice and judgment. Paul wrote: “For everything that was written in the past was written to teach us, so that through the endurance taught in the Scriptures and the encouragement they provide we might have hope” (Rom. Just imagine: complete joy, total peace, and an abundance of hope! Isn’t that what we need? Here’s how to maintain hope for the long haul: Remember Scripture ![]() The God of hope wants us to overflow with hope, but it will require the power of the Spirit in our lives. There is a reason Paul reminded the Church at Rome: “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” (Rom. If we long for revival, yet we don’t see repentance on the horizon, we believe our prayers for revival are wasted. If we want to play catch with Dad, but Dad’s always working, eventually we decide baseball isn’t so important. If we don’t dream, then we won’t be disappointed. 11:1, ESV), what do we do when our hope has gone? We often give up hoping-for our own self-preservation. But if faith is the “assurance of things hoped for” (Heb. Prayer is supposed to be offered up in faith. It also makes our guts wrench, our muscles weak, and our minds confused. ![]() Should we do the same when it seems our nation also deserves judgment? When hope for revival is deferred or other prayer longings go unanswered, it doesn’t just make our hearts sick. 14:11–12) because in His displeasure, He had deemed it was too late. God told the Prophet Jeremiah to stop praying for Israel (Jer. Let’s face it: Isn’t it difficult to maintain endurance in our prayer lives-to intercede for years only to see no progress, or worse, regression? Prayer is often described as a battle-a fight we sometimes wonder if we’re losing. How do we pray when hope seems lost, when a situation deteriorates rather than coming to resolution? How can we keep from becoming discouraged and giving up when our nation slips further and further into darkness? How do we maintain confidence in the grace and love of God when judgment, logical consequences, and the downward slope of destruction seem inevitable? Proverbs 13:12 describes it this way: “Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but a longing fulfilled is a tree of life.” ![]() Hope can be defined as the belief or expectation that something can or will happen. We continued to trust God by bringing other requests to Him, but something changed in our fervency. Mary had slipped into eternity and there was nothing more to pray. Please, please save Will’s mom!”Īnd of course, from Will himself-the pleas of a son praying for a dearly loved mother, “God, please let my mom come to know You before it’s too late.”Īnd then the word came, but it was not what Will wanted to hear. “God, we have asked You for Mary for a long time. The physical and emotional distance between mother and son increased Will’s concern and his desire for God to answer. When Mary became terminally ill, Will’s requests intensified and so did our prayers on her behalf. How could God ignore all these years of fervent prayer by so many? ![]() Will himself had prayed a lot longer than the rest of us. Will you pray she accepts Christ?” We prayed for Mary again-prayers of expectation, prayers of hope.įor several years, our Bible study group prayed for Mary MacDonnell-and we weren’t the only ones Will had asked. “I know I keep asking, but will you pray for my mom? She doesn’t know the Lord. There were weeks when Will hesitated to ask again. “Will you pray for my mother, Mary? She doesn’t know the Lord and she doesn’t want to talk about it.” As a follower of Christ from a home where faith was a contentious subject, Will’s prayer request at our weekly Bible study was almost always the same. Will God Answer Prayers for Another Great Revival? ![]()
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