“You were chosen according to the purpose of God the Father and were made a holy people by his Spirit.” 1 Peter 1:2 (GNT)

Many people in our broken world wonder why things so often don’t go the way they should. They want to know, “Is there any hope?”

Hope is essential.

You and I need genuine hope—not just optimism. Optimism is psychological; it’s based on the way you think. Hope is theological; it’s based on who God is and his relationship with you. Optimism is positive thinking. Hope is passionate trusting.

The book of 1 Peter is a letter of hope. Peter wrote it to Christians who were suffering persecution in the Roman Empire.

In the first seven verses of 1 Peter, God gives five roots of radical hope. Over the next few days, we’ll look at each of those five roots.

The first root of radical hope is this: God chose you before you chose him.

The Bible says, “You were chosen according to the purpose of God the Father and were made a holy people by his Spirit” (1 Peter 1:2 GNT).

Your salvation is no accident. Long before you chose God, he chose you. You were his idea. Before God even created the universe, he decided he wanted to create you.

Look again at 1 Peter 1:2. It says, “You were chosen according to the purpose of God.” That means God has a purpose for your life. What is that purpose? He wants to make you holy for heaven.

In other words, God has chosen you to spend eternity with him. That’s a big deal! In fact, it’s the highest honor you could ever receive.

And it’s the first reason you can have hope, no matter what’s going on in your life.

Let this root of radical hope grow down deep in your life: Before you chose him, God chose you to spend eternity with him.