Rejoicing in Hope
By Chastity Ogburn
Avery County
“Rejoicing in hope; patient in tribulation; continuing instant in prayer;” (Romans 12:12) Each day we wake up and we don’t know what lies ahead of us. We face the unknown. What does this day have for me? God has given us some encouraging words from His written word that gives us much hope. The Bible is God’s instruction book to help us navigate life here on earth. My daughter, Mary Kathryn wrote the verse Romans 12:12 on our board at the ministry the other day. What a timely message from the Lord it was. I was thinking of some things going on in our lives and instead of getting overwhelmed and discouraged, God was encouraging me through His word. I thought to myself, “This verse is exactly what the Lord wants me to do.”
First, God wants me to be joyful in hope, meaning that whatever is going on around me, or wherever I am at the time, and whatever I am facing, I will constantly look ahead. As a follower of Christ, we are never without hope. Jesus is our Hope. We can lay all our hope and trust in Him.
Second, God wants me to be patient in hard times. This is a difficult one for me. I am not a very patient person. Just ask my husband and he can testify to my impatience. God has taught me through being patient and waiting on Him, I get His very best. His ways are so much better than my ways. God sees the big picture. God has a plan and purpose in our times of trouble or doubt. He wants us to surrender and patiently wait on Him. When we are patient, we grow in our faith and trust in Him.
The last part of this verse says God wants me to be faithful in my prayers. I want to see God show up so I must be faithful in my prayer life. I am to be continuing always in my prayers and to keep on praying even when it seems like nothing is happening. Prayer is talking to the Lord. Prayer is a relationship and connection to the one who created us. God wants us to share everything with Him and trust Him to work everything out according to His will and plan. Now, on this same whiteboard that week my youngest daughter, Piper, added something in her own writing and it was just so powerful and wonderful to see. My eyes caught it one day as I looked up at the board. We always write the names of the volunteers serving that day at the ministry and she had written our names and she also wrote the name Jesus along with our names.
I sat there thanking Jesus that my Piper wrote His name on the board. My seven-year-old little girl knows that Jesus is the one we look to. We can’t do ministry or life without Him. Anne Ministries belongs to the Lord and we invite His presence to always be with us. He is our hope, our peace, and the one we can trust to lead, guide, and direct us. We can be patient in times of trouble or distress because He is always with us and He has a plan. We can always and continually go to Him in prayer. Instantly we can call on His name and pray. We can trust God has the answers as we go to Him in prayer. He will faithfully answer them in His time and according to His will.
__________________________________________
In 2018, the Lord put on my heart the calling to reach out to those hurting from loss. Anne Ministries began in September of 2018. Anne means “grace” and that is what this ministry is about, extending God’s grace and allowing Him to heal your deepest hurt. This ministry reaches out to those hurting from abortion, miscarriage, stillbirth, and infant loss. The ministry expanded in 2021 offering pregnancy support services to those facing an unplanned pregnancy. Chastity and her family attend Emmanuel Baptist Church in Newland, NC. You can purchase her book, His Grace Covers All, on Amazon HERE.
Read more Christian news HERE.
__________________________________________
