The Gospel Transforms Lives through Faith, Hope, and Love
By Jessica Van Roekel "We always thank God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, when we pray for you, since we heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and of the love that you have for all the saints, because of the hope laid up for you in heaven. Of this you have heard before in the word of the truth, the gospel, which has come to you, as indeed in the whole world it is bearing fruit and increasing—as it also does among you, since the day you heard it and understood the grace of God in truth." - Colossians 1:4-6 ESV Good news is satisfying but sometimes hard to find. The phone rings late at night, and our heart stops. The morning headlines paint the world as a dark place. The evening news fills our dreams with dread as we hope for a good night's sleep. But there's nothing more satisfying in difficult circumstances than good news. A cheerful report about the people we care about shines bright on an otherwise dreary day. Such was the case for Paul, the Apostle. While imprisoned in Rome, he received news of a congregation in Colossae that caused him to rejoice. This church resulted from Epaphras' conversion to Christianity when Paul preached to the Ephesians. The Colossian's response to the gospel changed lives as people came to faith in Christ Jesus. There's nothing more encouraging for someone in ministry to witness or hear about a person who encounters the Gospel of Jesus Christ and whose life changes. The world is hard, with many barriers to growing up in Christ. Distractions abound, and the pull of the old way of living is strong. We can learn from the believers in the Colossians church and their emphasis on faith, hope, and love. Biblical faith involves a commitment to God and an expression of trust in him. Faith goes beyond what we know and understand. It is, as Hebrews 11:1 states, the assurance of things hoped for, and the conviction of things not seen. Faith is a loyalty to God that withstands the brunt of any bad news we may face. It takes God at his word, which means if God says he will not forsake us, we can trust him to keep his word. Faith in God finds its hope in spiritual realities, not the circumstances we see. | 
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