Living a Hope That Changes Us

In the First Letter of Peter, we hear these words: we have been given “a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ.” That phrase, living hope, is worth thinking about for a moment.

This hope is not something abstract. It is not simply optimism or wishful thinking. It is not a way of avoiding the realities of life. This hope is alive. It breathes. It moves. And perhaps most importantly, it changes us.

On Easter Sunday, we witnessed that hope made visible in a very real way through baptism. As water was poured and prayers were spoken, we were reminded that baptism is not just something we celebrate for an individual. It is something that reshapes all of us. In baptism, we are joined to Jesus’ death and resurrection. We are claimed as Christ’s own forever. We are marked not only by belonging, but by becoming.

And that becoming is ongoing.

This coming Sunday, we will again gather around the waters of baptism. Once more, we will be invited to renew our own baptismal covenant and to remember who we are and whose we are. In the Episcopal Church, baptism is not a one time event that we simply look back on. It is a lifelong calling. It is an invitation to live differently because of what God has already done.

That is where this “living hope” begins to take shape.

The hope we are given in Christ is not passive. It does not leave us where we are. It calls us forward. It invites us to grow into lives marked by love, compassion, justice, and grace. It sustains us when life is difficult, and it nudges us toward becoming more fully the people God created us to be.

This is also where confirmation finds its place.

If baptism is the beginning of our life in Christ, confirmation is an opportunity to reaffirm that life with intention and maturity. It is a moment of saying “yes” again, perhaps more consciously and more personally, to the promises that have been spoken over us. It is not about having everything figured out. It is about recognizing that God is still at work in us and choosing to respond.

In many ways, confirmation is one expression of living hope. It is a step along the journey of becoming Easter people, people who trust that resurrection is not only something we celebrate, but something we participate in.

And so, if you have ever found yourself wondering about confirmation, what it means, whether it might be something for you, or what the process looks like, I would welcome that conversation. There is no pressure and no expectation, just an open invitation to explore what it might mean to continue growing into the life God has given you.

Because the truth is, living hope does change us.

It changes how we see ourselves, not as defined by our past, but as held within God’s future. It changes how we see one another, not as strangers or adversaries, but as fellow travelers in Christ. And it changes how we move through the world, not with fear as our foundation, but with a steady trust that God is still at work.

Even now.

Especially now.

And perhaps just as importantly, it reminds us that we are not meant to do this alone. We are brought together, in community, through word and sacrament, through shared life and shared grace.

This is the hope we have been given.

And this is the hope we are still becoming.

Kevin+