Hope That Jesus Changes Everything

by Greg Edens

Twenty-five years ago, my life was on a different course. Raised in a family full of alcohol and drug addiction, I had chosen the same path as mom did. In my early twenties, I started abusing alcohol to calm the anxiety I had. My choices were taking my life down a very dark road. One night, in a drunken bar fight, my entire life came into clear focus. I realized just how empty my life was. For the first time, I recognized that my life was broken and hopeless.  

I remember that night so clearly. On the way home from the bar, I said, out loud, “There has to be a better way.” I had not considered God much in my life. Though I did not know at the time what I was experiencing, I know now that it was God convicting me of the sin that was separating me from Him (“When he comes, he will prove the world to be in the wrong about sin and righteousness and judgement” John 16:8). The next day, a physical trainer (Jason) at Gold’s Gym, where I was working out at the time, shared his faith in Jesus Christ with me. God’s timing was and is perfect. Not long after, I surrendered my messy life to Jesus Christ. Ever since, Jesus has been taking that mess and making a message for others who need to find hope when life seems hopeless. The Apostle Paul reminded the believer at Rome of the hope one receives through a relationship with Jesus. Paul wrote this in Romans 5:1-5: 

Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand. And we boast in the hope of the glory of God. Not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us. 

Hope is the Greek word elpís and it means “to live in expectation of what is certain.” My life was hopeless when I lived without Jesus, but Jesus changes everything! I have now walked with Jesus for twenty-five years, and his grace and goodness are so evident in my life. Life is not always easy, but I am a living testimony that hope does not put the believer to shame. Because of my hope in Jesus Christ, I have learned to trust God, push through when I am tested, and stay true to who God has called me to be. I strive to live according to 1 Timothy 4:7-8 where Paul encouraged young Pastor Timothy saying,  

Have nothing to do with godless myths and old wives’ tales; rather, train yourself to be godly. For physical training is of some value, but godliness has value for all things, holding promise for both the present life and the life to come. This is a trustworthy saying that deserves full acceptance. That is why we labor and strive, because we have put our hope in the living God, who is the Savior of all people, and especially of those who believe. 

Got hope? Jesus changes everything!