“Rejoice in our confident hope. Be patient in trouble, and keep on praying.” (Romans 12:12 – NLT)

There is a hope that counselors like John Townsend and Henry Cloud describe as DEFENSIVE HOPE. Defensive hope is when we use hope to keep us from experiencing grief and sadness. As an example, the common philosophy that gets distorted is for us to just “keep positive.” There is nothing wrong with being positive…our world needs more of it!

But when we use this mindset to keep us from facing the reality of grief and sadness it becomes a defensive hope. At first, it seems to work well as it spares us from having to go through the pain of accepting, grieving, and engaging the situation. But the problem with defensive hope is that it is a hope that fails.

Defensive hope will actually keep us from accepting a reality about a situation that must be acknowledged. Defensive hope may keep us in a relationship that is unhealthy or unsafe. Defensive hope may keep us from making a necessary change in order to heal. Defensive hope is not a strong foundation upon which to build one’s life.

In Romans 12 we read not of a defensive hope, but of a CONFIDENT HOPE: “Rejoice in our confident hope. Be patient in trouble, and keep on praying.” (Romans 12:12 – NLT) The New Living Translation uses this phrase several times where others do not. The Greek word is hope. So why did the translators choose to add the word confident? Are there different kinds of hope?

Consider that the Bible often distinguishes a difference between what may be common among us as humans compared with something unique that God offers. It happens with words like wisdom. There is worldly wisdom and Godly wisdom. (1 Corinthians 1:20) It happens with peace. There is a peace this world offers and a peace that Jesus brings. (John 14:27) And so it is with hope. Romans 5:5 explains, “And this hope will not lead to disappointment. For we know how dearly God loves us…” (Romans 5:5 NLT)

God calls us to confident hope. Confident hope actually invites us to lean into the reality we face today. Confident hope is built on nothing less than Jesus’ blood and righteousness. He is the cornerstone upon which true confidence is built. He is a cornerstone that will not fail. Through the mountain highs and the valleys low, confident hope in Jesus is the most stable and secure hope you will ever find in this world. Being in a relationship with Jesus is the safest place for you to be.

Prayer
Heavenly Father, we thank You for the gift of Your Son Jesus, and we thank You for the security that we have in Him. We thank You that His blood, His righteousness, shed for us at the cross. The eternal life that he’s given us is secured as a confident hope for us. And we ask that You would grant to us the ability to live with that confident hope.

It doesn’t mean that we ignore situations. It means that we embrace them as they come, knowing that even through bad times, You have a place for us. You have a destination for us. You have an answer for us and allow us to continue to trust You as we follow You to that day when we will one day then see You face to face. It’s in Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.