Having real hope

"Be transformed by the renewing of your minds."
~ Romans 12:2

One thing is for sure, none of us could have planned for all the events that have taken place over the past year.  As I am encountering more people who have had their initial COVID vaccine shot, I am begin to sense that there is a feeling of "hope."  

Hope is definitely something that when it takes up residence in your life, things begin to look differently.  

In many ways, I'm grateful that hope is not dependent on peace in the land, justice in the world, or a list of successes.  Hope is our willingness to leave unanswered questions unanswered and unknown futures unknown.  Hope seems to allow for us to see God's guiding hand, not just in gentle, sacred moments, but also in the shadows of uncertainty.

One thing is for sure, if someone would have asked the question, "Where do you see yourself in five years?" five years ago, I sure would have not responded, "Living through a pandemic."

If anything we have learned from the last year is that we hold lightly to dreams and fears, and that we must be open to receive each new day as a unique expression of God's love for each of us.

I remember a woman from one of my first congregations I served saying, "As long as there is life, there is hope."  If anything the past year has taught us is this, "As long as there is life, there is hope."

This new sense of hope that I am encountering seems to be giving power to live in a new way, with new strength.  It's not that our life has changed that much since yesterday, but there is this underlying understanding that at "some point, hope will prevail."  

While the pandemic continues to be very real, the paradox of the expectation is that those who believe in tomorrow can better live today; those who expect joy to come out of sadness can discover the beginnings of a new life in the midst of the present condition.

It is important to have hope, and to Stay in God's grip!

G. Todd Williams (c) 2021