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Romans 12:12 - Rejoice in hope, be patient in trouble, and keep on praying.

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

INTRODUCTION

If we take counsel with our doubts and 
fears, or try to solve everything that we cannot 
see clearly, before we have faith, perplexities 
will only increase and deepen. But if we come to 
God, feeling helpless and dependent, as we really 
are, and in humble, trusting faith make known our 
wants to Him whose knowledge is infinite, who sees 
everything in creation, and who governs everything by 
His will and word, He can and will attend to our 
cry, and will let light shine into our hearts. 
Through sincere prayer we are brought into 
connection with the mind of the Infinite. We may have 
no remarkable evidence at the time that the 
face of our Redeemer is bending over us in 
compassion and love, but this is even so. We may not 
feel His visible touch, but His hand is upon us 
in love and pitying tenderness. SC96, 97 

COMMENTARY PEARL

   Hope: Have Only Positive Expectations. 
Something inside me bucks up against this maxim. After 
all, not every story has a happy ending. Or does 
it? I can easily think of several lasting 
benefits that have come from some of the hardest 
things in my life. More than making lemonade out of 
lemons, certain "afflictions" have produced results 
I now enjoy every day. 
   My childhood was very broken - mentally 
ill and alcoholic parents, painful isolation 
from our family in Italy, both fleeting wealth 
and poverty, and the tragic death of a brother, 
among other things. But brought to Him, Jesus has 
used every smidgen of it to deepen my dependence 
on Him, increasing my faith, patience, and joy 
manifold. Verses such as James 1:2-8 repeats this 
theme of "count it all joy" (v. 2, ESV) when we 
face hardship. 
   I've also experienced peace and joy that 
aren't attached to circumstances. Plus, I get the 
added perk of sharing that with others facing 
"trials of various kinds" (v. 2, ESV). 
   This kind of hope, transcendent HOPE is 
the result of counting on Someone loving and 
all-powerful, the One able to make the sweetest lemonade 
out of the sourest lemons. Beyond the fruit 
(pardon the Galatians 5:22-23 pun) I can have here 
on earth, I have the assurance that my 
"momentary troubles" will ultimately give way to an 
eternal glory I can't fathom (2 Corinthians 
4:17-18). My true hope is heaven. Isabella Yosuico 
   Faith Step: Allow yourself to imagine 
heaven and its healing. [Mornings With Jesus 2021 
Devotional by Guideposts and Zondervan] 

COMMENTARY ILLUSTRATION

   Hey, Buck, what do you think penguins 
did to deserve that life?" John said, in his 
John Brooklynese. I know this sounds like a 
strange conversation starter, but if you knew John 
you'd understand. "Okay. I'll bite," I said, 
settling in for the verbal ride. 
   "Seriously, take a look at those guys. 
They basically live in a subzero blizzard, 
everything around is trying to eat them, the dads have 
to stand there protecting an egg while the mom 
walks a million miles for a beak-full of food to 
bring back..." 
   "Well...?"
   But John, being John, was off to another 
topic. 
   But I was stuck on the penguins. Do you 
ever wonder the same? God, what did I do to 
deserve this? 
   It's interesting, the longer I walk with 
the Lord, the more wonderfully mysterious He 
becomes. Sometimes He blesses me when I least expect 
it. Sometimes I think I'm plugging along great 
and He leads me smack into a season of struggle. 
But, fair winds or storms, He is God. And He is 
good. 
   I've never stood in a blizzard protecting 
an egg. But there have been rough parts of the 
road, and it's been there in the valleys, in the 
darkest dark, that I've felt that warm arm around my 
shoulders and I've heard that heavenly whisper of love 
that never leaves or forsakes. Looking back, I 
wouldn't trade a mile. 
   And, now that I think about it, penguins 
actually look pretty happy. Maybe they already know 
something I'm learning every day - mountaintop or 
canyon, we have a Friend on the journey. And I'm so 
glad. 
   May the stars make me humble and the 
storms make me strong. Thank You, Lord. for the 
things that bring me closer to You. Buck Storm 
[Walking in Grace 2021 Devotional by Guideposts and 
Zondervan] 

CLOSING THOUGHT

   In 1 Corinthians 15:43-44, we read, "The 
bodies we have now embarrass us, for they become 
sick and die; but they will be full of glory  
Yes, they are weak, dying bodies now, but when we 
live again they will be full of strength. They 
are just human bodies at death, but when they 
come back to life they will be superhuman bodies. 
For just as there are natural, human bodies, 
there are also supernatural, spiritual bodies." I 
can hardly believe it. I, with shriveled, bent 
fingers; atrophied muscles; and no feeling from the 
shoulders down will one day have a new body - light, 
bright, and clothed in righteousness - powerful and 
dazzling. Can you imagine the hope this gives someone 
with a spinal cord injury, a brain injury, 
cerebral palsy, multiple sclerosis, or bipolar 
disease? As the apostle Paul writes, we can "be 
joyful in hope" (Rom. 12:12) just allowing our 
imaginations to think about such things. 
   Lord, I thank You and praise You for the 
indescribable, almost explosive hope in 1 Corinthians 15. 
When Im weary and discouraged over arms and 
legs that don't work. I remember that the time is 
very short - a handful of years at most - until I 
will step into a new body made to live forever. A 
body like Yours! What a wondrous, joyful thought! 
[A Spectacle of Glory by Joni Eareckson Tada 
and Larry Libby] 

PRACTICAL APPLICATION

Hope is a golden cord connecting you to 
heaven. This cord helps you hold your head up high, 
even when multiple trials are buffeting you. I 
never leave your side, and I never let go of your 
hand. But without the cord of hope, your head may 
slump and your feet may shuffle as you journey 
uphill with Me. Hope lifts your perspective from 
your weary feet to the glorious view you can see 
from the high road. You are reminded that the 
road we are traveling together is ultimately a 
highway to heaven. When you consider this radiant 
destination, the roughness or smoothness of the road 
ahead becomes much less significant. I am training 
you to hold in your heart a dual focus: My 
continual Presence and the hope of heaven. (Rom. 
12:12; 1Th. 5:8; Heb. 6:18, 19) [Jesus Calling by 
Sarah Young] 

LINK FOR FURTHER STUDY ON THIS PASSAGE

Romans 12:12 - Rejoice in confident hope. Be 
patient in trouble, and keep on praying. 

http://www.abible.com/devotions/2021/20210827-1108.html 

YOUR COMMENTS

If anyone has a paraphrase, commentary or 
testimony on this passage of Scripture, either 
personal or otherwise, I would be interested in 
hearing from you.  Thanks in advance and let's keep 
uplifting Jesus that all might be drawn to Him. Fred 
Gibbs  

LINKS WORTH CHECKING OUT

Most Important Decision in Life: 
http://www.youtube.com/embed/WGnEuGwvXqU?rel=0 

Steps to Peace by Billy Graham: 
https://stepstopeace.org/ 

A Man without Equal by Bill Bright: 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NiVa7UoruIo 

Seeking God Made Real: 
http://vimeo.com/31489782 

Prayer Made Real: 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tc8VdMV26VE 

Importance of Choice: 
http://creationhealth.com/CREATION-Health/Choice [click on video]  

Medical Seminar on Healthful Living by David 
DeRose, MD, MPH: 
https://www.smartlifestyletv.com/lifestart 

LINKS FOR BIBLE STUDIES 

Lifting Up Jesus Bible Studies: 
http://www.liftingupjesus.net/ 

Amazing Facts Bible Studies: 
http://www.amazingfacts.org/bible-study/bible-study-guides.aspx  

Hope Awakens Bible Study Guides: 
https://www.hopeawakens.study/lesson-header;id=2 

Glow Tract Video Bible Studies: 
http://www.bibleresearch.info/ 

LINKS FOR BIBLE PROPHECY SEMINARS

Panorama of Prophecy with Pastor Doug 
Batchelor: https://www.panoramaofprophecy.com/  
[BEGINS October 15, 2021]

Islam and Christianity in Prophecy, The 
Third and Final Conflict by Tim Roosenberg: 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gHSJB-fuHLU&list=PLWhQIHGTHlkaGg5Cwe3NDzWtFX8vNSpsE 

Unlocking Bible Prophecies by Cami Oetman of 
Adventist World Radio: https://www.awr.org/bible 

Hope Awakens by John Bradshaw of IIW: 
https://itiswritten.tv/programs/hope-awakens 

Prophecies Decoded by Pastor Ron Clouzet: 
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL1A435C5373550657