Great, Big Stubborn Hope

There are moments when you feel like you're soaring through the clouds, while at other times you feel like the wind has been stolen from your sails. And still others when you feel blessed if you manage to crawl out of bed, let alone get ready. So goes the human journey. And the more you open up and let yourself love, create, hope and dream, the greater the potential for joy. And yet the heavier the blows when the heartbreaks, losses and betrayals strike. Thus the nature of risk. Exhilarating. True. Yet frightening. Utterly frightening.

Brené Brown talks about how vulnerability is the doorway to connection, connection being the element that brings purpose and meaning — in essence, why we all are here. And yet she also talks about how terrifying vulnerability can feel. Nobody wants to feel shame. Nobody wants to feel exposed. Nobody wants to feel hurt. And yet it is vulnerability, risk, putting ourselves out there that is the key to living fully, discovering meaning, and the connection we all are searching for.

I bring this up now because these are not ordinary times we are living in, and I worry we may be shutting down. Daily, I am bombarded by news headlines and social feeds, narratives of fear, injustice, corruption, and sheer absurdity. There seems to be a collective sense of despair. And the chasms between us run deep.

So how do we maintain hope in a hopeless world? And how do we resist the temptation to retreat into our shell and hide our heads in the sand, resolving to stay safe and keep our walls up? While there seems to be a collective sense of despair, I feel there is also a collective brace. And yet...it is not the brace but rather the embrace that is needed. It is not apathy but courage that is called for. It is not despair but hope that must rise up.

Hope. It is persistent. Resilient. Stubborn. Hope persists despite the tragedy, despite the violence and the heartbreak and the injustices. Hope has a way of surprising us when we least expect it, springing up in spite of all our attempts to push it down, reviving desires that our cynicism wrote off a long time ago. Hope, I believe, is the ultimate antidote for these days of despair.

But in what or whom do we hope? For me, my hope is anchored in this idea of connection — why we all are here. This connection to God. To love. To a God who is love. And to each other, all of us beloved children of God. For this is the greatest story of love and redemption that the world has ever known. You see, I believe that God is in the business of making all things new and that one day, in spite of what the headlines say, everything will be made right and we will live in a just world. Every divide and every wound will be healed. Heaven will meet earth and there will be no more war, no more tears, no more sorrow, and no more pain. No more corruption and no more lies, no death, sickness or poverty, no racism, violence or abuse. And we will live together in peace, all of us brothers and sisters, black, brown, yellow, white, as children of God. And this is not just pie in the sky. We don't have to wait for death to experience this heavenly ideal. No, I believe that heaven is near. Though one day it will come in fullness (and today is obviously not that day), it is a future we can bring to earth now.

Every time we welcome the stranger. Every time we offer kindness towards our enemy. Every time we make the choice to open ourselves to love and to vulnerability. Every time we share a meal with the hungry or offer shelter for those shivering in the cold. Every time we choose to serve instead of fighting our way to the front. Every time we stand up for the poor or defend the cause of the oppressed. Every time we give the gift of presence and take the time to listen. Every time we bestow honor and dignity on those the world looks down upon. Every time we create beauty that draws our hearts towards the divine.

As MQP, this is our dream — to join God in the renewal of all things through practices that ground us in the love of God. As followers of Jesus, this is not a time for shrinking back or for hiding our heads in the sand in despair. No, this is not a time for giving up. This is a time for courage. For showing up. For taking risks. For love and generosity. This is a time for hope. Great, big, stubborn hope!