Exploring Hope

Saturday, May 23, 2026

Hope Church Family,

There are few worse feelings for a kid than to be the last one on the playground to be chosen when teams are being formed. It screams that you are unwanted.

But what a difference when the players who always win choose you to be on their team as one of their first picks!

Among other titles that Peter calls the church by in 1 Peter 2:9-10, the first is "a chosen race." Those born of the Spirit through faith in the life, death and resurrection of Christ are considered another "race" of people, and He has chosen that "race" for His own.

We will explore that title and others in Our New Identity -- my next message in the series "The Hope That Overcomes." I look forward to seeing you there tomorrow afternoon as we worship the Lord around His Word at 4:00 in the chapel of Chicago Hope Academy, 1289 West Bowler Street in Chicago. There is a parking lot behind the school at 2156 West Ogden. Our entrances are marked with Hope Church Welcome flags.

If you are unable to join us, our livestream is available at
https://www.youtube.com/
and our secure online giving site is
https://hopechurchchgo.org/give
But if you can make it with a bit of extra effort, please do, It will be worth it. We would love to worship with you either way!

Rejoicing to have been chosen,
Pastor Charles

Hope Church Chicago - Give

May 3, 2026

Hope Church Family

What shapes your mind? What is most influential in forming your identity or the values that guide your innermost choices?

Fear shapes many people — violence perpetrated against them, financial loss that left them at risk, trust that was violated and left them emotionally compromised. Experiences like these can cause us to make vows to ourselves that, by any means necessary, we will protect ourselves from that happening again.

Some people get shaped by desire. They have an experience they want to make a regular part of their lives. They commit themselves to a manner of life that, to the best of their ability, ensures the availability of that experience. That can be an experience of power, of pleasure, or of security.

The apostle Peter presents another path: to be shaped by hope. He describes what that means in 1 Peter 1:13–21, which will be the focus of today's message, "Shaped By Hope," in our current series, The Hope That Overcomes.

Will you join us today at 4:00 PM as we gather to worship our Lord around His Word? We meet in the chapel of Chicago Hope Academy, 2189 West Bowler Street in Chicago. There's more parking available behind the school in the lot at 2156 W. Ogden. Entrances to our service are marked with Hope Church Welcome flags.

If you are not able to join us in person, our live stream is available by visiting https://www.youtube.com/
and our secure online giving is available at
https://hopechurchchgo.org/give
We would love for you to worship with us.

For the Hope that Jesus provides,
Pastor Charles.
--
Charles M. Butler
Pastor
Hope Church Chicago

"May the God of hope
fill you with all joy and peace in believing,
so that by the power of the Holy Spirit
you may abound in hope."
Romans 15:13, ESV

Hope Church Chicago - Give

Hope Church Family,

We know that we are saved because we believe the gospel. We believe the gospel because we trust the message that was delivered to us. That message came from the Scriptures that our Lord believed, the same Scriptures that He fulfilled through His birth, life, death, resurrection and ascension into heaven.

Ours is not a faith of superstitions, but one of truth and veracity. It is also a message of wonder to be believed. As we worship our Lord around His Word today, we rejoice that we can be confident in the gospel and the salvation that it promises. We hope you'll be able to join us in person at 4:00 PM in the chapel of Chicago Hope Academy, 2189 West Bowler Street in Chicago. There's more parking behind the school at 2156 West Ogden. Our entrances are marked with Hope Church Welcome flags.

If you can't join us in person, view our livestream by visiting
https://www.youtube.com/
and if you prepared an offering, our secure online giving is available at
https://hopechurchchgo.org/give

We have a wonderful Savior who has provided a wonderful salvation! Truly the gospel is "A Message of Wonder," today's word from 1 Peter 1:10-12. It's the fourth message in our series in 1 Peter, "The Hope That Overcomes."

Rejoicing in His Hope,
Pastor Charles

Hope Church Chicago - Give