Day 031: Finding Hope for the Future
I used to think the world needed faith more than anything. In the last year or so, I’ve changed my opinion. I am now leaning toward the belief that what the world needs most is hope. Hope has to come before faith. It’s still a bit of the old chicken or the egg question though. What comes first? Is it possible to have hope if you don’t have faith? Is it possible to have faith if you don’t have hope?
I’m not sure I’ll ever know the answer. What I do know is that we need both. I also know where we find our hope and what, or who, we put our hope in vastly affects our outcomes.
As a single man, I’m privy to various single mom groups. Lately, I’ve seen a disturbing trend in secular groups. Women, who have been hurt by men but who still crave the togetherness that they were created for and the sexual pleasure that is beautiful a gift from the Lord, are turning to other women to satisfy both needs. These women were not born gay. They have chosen homosexuality as a lifestyle because they feel other women better understand them, childcare is easier, and women are less risky.
On the other hand, I also see women choosing the virtue of chastity. These women also long for the companionship. They struggle with sexual desire. They want more out of this life and the next. Rather than changing themselves to suit their desires, they’ve changed their desires to suit themselves and their eternities. These women learn to master their desires. They build strength and confidence those who give up will never attain.
Both scenarios are extremes. Most single moms do not fall into homosexuality, but most single moms also don’t choose to honor God’s plan for sexuality. They don’t realize their bodies are sacred temples of the Holy Ghost or that their Guardian Angels and the Lord Himself are with them every moment of the day. They compromise their souls (along with their bodies, hearts, and minds) in a way that is completely ordinary and accepted today.
It is hard to dispute the fact that this way does not bring hope.
I understand the plight of the single mom and see its application to our country, churches, families, and even to ourselves today. We’ve been hurt. Some of those hurts were completely unjustified. Some we have to take partial responsibility for. Some hit out of the blue while others could be seen from a mile away.
What we most need to remember about hope is that hope requires thinking differently. The same event can happen to people with very similar life stories, yet affect them in very different ways. This is because one chooses to actively seek goodness and meaning which gives her hope. The other does not exercise her ability to do the same.
If you want to have hope, know who you are created to be. Seek to understand the greater the purpose behind your creation. Learn the meaning of your life. Take risks. See goodness. Be vulnerable. Offer charity without retribution. Roll with setbacks. See nothing in this world as permanent.
Many think hope requires being safe. Those who find true and lasting hope know that hope, like faith and love, requires the opposite.
Our God is Good. Our country is Blessed. Our families are Sacred. We are Loved. There is hope in that, but when we are willing to take risks to stand for it.
God Bless…
Gratitude Journal – May 11, 2023
Thank You Lord for…
- Seeing S at the fields today
- C’s AMAZING DIVING CATCH!!!
- M and A coming to the game.
- Getting the first Live Not Ordinary Challenge campaign written.
- Being able to understand subscribers.
- The perfect temperature
- Not needing surgery right now
- Being able to run again!
- Chicken, sweet potatoes, and red onion – great new recipe!
- Vanilla Oat Milk
- Finding the prayers at the end of the Missal
The Live Not Ordinary Challenge:
8 Weeks. Daily Challenges. Live Coaching. One Fierce & Growing Cadre!
Are you an American Christian who loves faith, family, and country but is concerned about how our world is going? If so, join the Live Not Ordinary Challenge and learn to love the past, have faith in the present, and find hope for the future through eight weeks of exercising your mind, soul, heart, and strength!