Q140_090826 Rom. 8:18,19 All Creation Is Waiting For Something It Cannot IdentifyQ140_090826 Rom. 8:18,19 All Creation Is Waiting For Something It Cannot Identify
How it Happens with Colin Cook
Colin Cook reflects on Romans 8:18–19, connecting Paul’s teaching on suffering and future glory with the hidden longing for God in every human heart. The episode links this deep inner ache to addiction, faith, and how quietly naming that longing can support both recovery and Christian witness.
14:41•8 Sept 2026
Suffering, Hidden Longing and the Glory to Come: Romans 8 for the Addicted Heart
Episode Overview
- Present suffering is set within the larger hope of future glory, which Paul insists far outweighs current pain.
- Every person carries an “earnest expectation” and inner ache, even if they chase the wrong things to satisfy it.
- Addictive behaviours and idols reveal that suppressing God is unbearable, yet people often cannot name what they truly want.
- Sharing faith is less about arguing and more about gently identifying the deep longing someone already feels for God’s fatherhood in Christ.
- Christians can see themselves as part of creation’s waiting, being quietly “revealed” as sons and daughters of God to those ready to hear.
“It is not that we are telling the unbeliever something he doesn't know, it's that we are identifying for the unbeliever something he already knows but cannot identify himself.”
How do people find strength in their journey to sobriety? This episode of *How it Happens with Colin Cook* turns to Romans 8:18–19 to answer that question through the lens of suffering, hope, and a deep, often hidden longing for God.
Colin reflects on the idea that "the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed to us." He stresses that Paul isn’t speaking lightly here; this is a man who knew shipwrecks, imprisonment and beatings, yet still said future glory outshines present pain. For anyone wrestling with addiction or emotional anguish, that contrast is offered as comfort rather than a quick fix.
A key theme is the “earnest expectation” within all creation. Colin argues that every human heart carries a restless ache for something better, even if people chase it through idols, false comforts, or destructive habits. As he puts it, "It is not that we are telling the unbeliever something he doesn't know, it's that we are identifying for the unbeliever something he already knows but cannot identify himself." That idea has huge implications for sharing faith with someone struggling.
Instead of arguments or heavy-handed preaching, Colin highlights the quiet power of calmly naming what a person has been feeling all along: that "endless empty longing" is really a yearning for the fatherhood of God shown in Jesus Christ. Listeners who are in recovery, or walking alongside someone who is, will hear a message that suffering sits inside a bigger story, where God can bring life out of apparent death.
You’ll also be reminded that simply being present and honest about Christ’s love might be the moment someone realises what their heart has been chasing for years. If you’ve ever felt that vague, unshakable ache for “something more”, could it be pointing you somewhere very specific?
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