Rejoicing in hope; patient in tribulation; continuing instant in prayer;
It may be that my mental picture is skewed somewhat because I am using just this one verse as the focus of my mediations, but I see this as something of a pyramid:
Rejoicing in hope
Patient in tribulation
Continuing instant in prayer
The foundation of the structure is prayer.
Without it, nothing else in this structure is possible.
Patience in tribulation is fundamental to faith.
All who live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution, so tribulation is part and parcel with the faith, and patience is key to its endurance.
Rejoicing in hope is that which is visible.
A prayer life, though sometimes public, is only truly effective when it is mostly secret between the believer and the Lord. If one is patient in tribulation, others will likely not notice.
So that which becomes the most visible aspect of faith is rejoicing in hope. Those who witness the believers who have it will likely only see their hopefulness and joy. Little will be made of their tribulations, and their secret prayer life – the thing that sustains them – is, well, secret.
It wouldn’t be hard to be jealous of these Christians, because they appear happy and hopeful. If only others knew. They are as burdened as anyone else. They spend countless hours asking God for the strength to keep on in their trials. But, because God is faithful to answer their prayers, all most everyone else sees is their joy and hopeful expectation
To my readers:
Thank you! It is a great joy to me to know you read the thoughts and lessons God has given me in His word. I would love to hear from you. Please feel free to leave comments.
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