Against All

 "Against all hope, Abraham in hope believed and so became the Father of many nations." Romans 4:18

...."What do you do when you have a promise for a yes but you're living in a no?" Chris Tiegreen

Tiegreen's question is one that every sincere and true follower of Christ will be confronted with. If you have surrendered completely to Him, then you can be sure He will lead you into places where everything seems to be against you and against the promises you have believed. When that happens, what will you do? And it will happen. You will come to the place of living in a no while you cling to His yes. The place where against all hope you in hope, believe. I have known that place. Let me share a bit of it with you.

I've shared before about my time of walking through an ugly and very visible divorce and the loss of my ministry in the midst of it. About the darkness and all the accompanying emotions and terrors that came with it. I've also shared about His faithfulness, total faithfulness in the midst of it. Today I'll share a bit about having His yes, clinging to it, in the midst of living in a no.

When all of the above happened to me, I was reeling. Emotionally, spiritually, and mentally. I didn't know what would happen to me or what I would be doing. "Total Unknown" would be an apt description of my life. Yet in the midst of all of that, I felt like I had His promises to hold on to, especially His promise of restoration, that He would restore the ministry He had called me to. A promise that flew in the face of all the current "now" circumstances of my life. There weren't many who believed this with me. Divorce was seen as a ministry killer by a large segment of the church, and though I was not the one who sought or wanted it, most believed that it had killed mine.....but I'd never heard that from Him. He reminded me that the gifts and callings of God were irrevocable. He had called me and I was His. That's what I held to as I lived in my no. A no that seemed to mock every bit of His yes.

Yet here I am, more than 30 years later, and His "Yes" triumphed over the enemy's "no." Scripture says that "death is swallowed up in victory," and just as the enemy and world system he works through screamed no at me, his no was completely swallowed up by the "Yes" of Jesus Christ. It will always be so.

You may be living in the no right now. Cling to the yes He's given you in His promise and promises. He will be faithful. Against all hope...hope. Believe. Trust. He will not fail you. He never will. No matter what it may seem, the no is not real when you have His yes to cling to. Hold and don't let go. In the right time and way, His promise will burst through. Wait for it. Look for it. He will not let you down.

Blessings
Pastor O