A couple weeks ago my wife and I attended a Detroit Tigers’ baseball game. The Tigers are in last place, so it was no surprise they were losing to the Royals 5-3 in the seventh inning. But with the bases loaded, who should stride to the plate but Miguel Cabrera.
Now “Miggy” is not the hitting fiend he once was, nonetheless, there is still some pop left in that bat. We couldn’t help sliding forward a little in our seats. We felt a flicker of hope that we could witness a game-changing, can’t-believe-we-were-there-to-see-it moment. There were two outs, and Miggy had two strikes. We were doubtful yet hopeful at the same time. Then it happened: “Crack!” The ball jumped off his bat, and we jumped out of our seats. Could it be! As the ball cleared the fence for a grand slam, Tiger fans celebrated together with great joy. Detroit took the lead and went on to win a game I will never forget. We had hoped for a spectacular outcome, and our hope had come true.
The Bible talks a lot about hope. But when we hope in God’s promises, there is never need for any doubt. Hope in God is always a sure thing. The hope part is that it hasn’t happened yet, so it’s like waiting with expectation. Confident expectation that God will do what He said He would do. After all, He is “the God of hope” who loves to fill believers “with all joy and peace” (Romans 15:13). He not only fills us with joy and peace, but He causes us to “abound in hope,” like a river overflowing with confidence in God’s future grace.
In Jesus’ name, let us slide forward in our seats, confidently expecting the blessings the Lord has promised to us.
