ENCOURAGEMENT FOR THE DAY

In Hope We Might Become Frustrated?

Romans 8:20
For the creation was subjected to frustration, not by its own choice, but by the will of the one who subjected it, in hope...

The word "frustration" in our passage today can also be translated as futility or failure. It comes from the Greek word: "mataiotes" which Strong's defines as "what is devoid of truth and appropriateness." I think Solomon did a pretty good job of summing up the hopelessness of nature's endless cycles when he wrote in Ecclesiastes 1:7: "All streams flow into the sea, yet the sea is never full. To the place the streams come from, there they return again." Think about it: rain falls on the mountain tops, flows into streams and waterfalls, forms tributaries leading to lakes and rivers, and ultimately ends in the ocean which never fills up -- just to evaporate and begin the whole process again. Futile? Monotonous?
So why is creation subject to frustration? Because God made it that way: "...by the will of the one who subjected it." But why? Paul gives us a clue: "...in hope." You might ask, "In hope of what?" In hope we might become frustrated; we might finally understand the futility of our own efforts and come to realize the search for meaning can only be found and satisfied by the Creator -- not in creation.

Stop for a moment and look at nature around us. Do you see just the creation or the Creator? Good -- now look again. Do you see Jesus as well? Because without Jesus, life is pointless, frustrating, and futile. Have you given your life over to Him?

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