In my last post I talked about the need to have faith to get through the challenges in life. Worries and fear are inevitable, but how we deal with them is entirely up to us.
Using the 1 Corinthians 13 model, I am proposing an age-old solution for getting through the rough spots. After you have faith, the next item in the recipe is hope. In the Old Testament, Jeremiah was faced with some pretty tough times. How did he survive? He turned his eyes on God, he kept the faith, and he held fast to hope. He wrote “The Lord is good to those whose hope is in Him”.
Hope is a wonderful tool. Hope springs eternal, we say. Hope is all about having an optimistic attitude. You don’t have to be a Christian to have hope. We can all hope for a better job, a better lifestyle, or for even that perfect someone to come along.
When we’re facing tough times, faith is the first thing you need. You need to find something to believe in. That’s your rock. That’s what you hold on to. But once you have that established, you need to turn your thoughts to the future.
Imagine a better place, a better way, a better job. Having hope is all about picturing yourself where you want to be, not where you are.
If you do this, you’ll find yourself thinking about yourself in that situation. In this way you are positioning yourself in your mind for that better situation. It’s a great way to get your mindset right for that new job or opportunity.
So, have a little faith, and then hope, hope hurray.