Born Into Hope, Appointed to Live It

Hope rises where others see endings. Our lives in Christ are destined to reflect His glory.

Devotional Source Credit: In Christ by E. Stanley Jones
Photo Credit: Unsplash

E. Stanley Jones turns our attention to the mystery and marvel of our identity in Christ, highlighting the phrase from Ephesians 1:12 that says we have been destined and appointed to live for the praise of His glory. This calling is not something we strive to earn but something rooted in God’s eternal purpose and sealed within our very being. Jones suggests that the phrase “we who first hoped in Christ” could mean we were once hopeless until we found hope in Him. Hope, he affirms, is not a natural virtue but a spiritual one, birthed in Christ alone. Outside of Him, the world may offer illusions of hope, but they wither in the face of suffering and death.

But in Christ, hope takes root in the soil of resurrection. The Christian begins where others think the story ends, in apparent defeat. And that is where the Gospel triumphs. From the cross to the empty tomb, every loss becomes a door to life. The believer sees possibility in every impossibility, newness in every ending, and transformation in every broken place. It is not blind optimism. It is the living hope born of union with the risen Lord.

We are destined for this. That is, God's life within us carries a direction, a pull, like gravity toward glory. But destiny without appointment would be chaos. So God also appoints us, places us, calls us, situates us, to live in a way that matches our divine destiny. When our destiny and our daily walk align, we live in harmony with who we are meant to be. It is not forced or artificial. It is the outflow of being who we are in Christ.

The moment we resist that inner current of divine life, we experience spiritual friction. But when we yield, we live as we were always meant to live, filled with hope, grounded in joy, resting in purpose, abounding in peace.

Journal Entry – Voice of the Holy Spirit Through Scripture

I have given you a living hope. You were not born into it by flesh and blood, but through My resurrection power. This hope is not a wishful thought or a distant dream. It is My own life in you, pulsing through your spirit, calling you forward in joy.

You were chosen in Me before the foundation of the world, destined to live for the praise of My glory. This is not a demand, it is a design. I shaped you to walk in good works that I prepared beforehand. When you walk in them, you walk in harmony with Me. When you resist, the ache within is not punishment, it is the voice of love reminding you of who you are.

You are not appointed to despair, you are appointed to overflow with hope. You are not sentenced to wandering, you are set apart for a purpose that matches your identity. I do not give appointments that contradict your destiny. I place you where My life in you can shine brightest. Even in places that seem like defeat, I am turning crosses into resurrections.

Let hope arise. Not from your strength, but from My Spirit within you. Your circumstances may press you, but they cannot crush you. Your trials may test you, but they cannot define you. You are born again to a living hope. Let that hope lead every step.

Scripture References: Ephesians 1:4-12, Romans 15:13, 1 Peter 1:3, Philippians 1:6, John 15:16, Romans 8:28-30, 2 Corinthians 4:8-10, 1 Thessalonians 5:24, Ephesians 2:10, Titus 2:13-14

Real-Life Analogy

It’s like a magnet hidden inside a compass needle. The needle doesn’t have to force itself to point north. It simply yields to the pull already within it. When we try to twist that needle against the pull, it resists and trembles. But when we let it settle, it finds its alignment.

Our lives work the same way. Christ in us is the pull. Our spirits are wired to respond. So today, rather than fight against that inner leading, we can say, “Lord, I trust You to express Your life through me right now in this conversation, in this waiting room, in this moment of decision.” Letting His life lead will always draw us true.

Prayer of Confidence

Father, I rest in the hope that is already mine in Christ. I am not grasping at straws or trying to fabricate peace. You have already filled me with Your joy, Your peace, Your purpose. You have appointed me to live for Your glory and have placed within me the very life that fulfills that purpose. So today, I say yes to what You have already designed. I yield to the pull of Your Spirit within me. You are the sunrise in every shadow, the victory in every defeat, the life in every ending. Thank You for writing my story in hope.