Keep Hope Alive [written by Maryam Otsokwa]
He evidently looked like a man that had lost all Hope. His business that he built for over ten years had crumbled. His wife took his children and left him. He had to liquidate his properties to pay up debts. He started suffering from partial stroke, hypertension and high blood pressure. He went from living in comfort to living like a peasant, not knowing where the next meal would come from. But with all these, that man still thought all could get better. That is a 21st century Job. He never lost hope.
The world of today carries a lot of burden, disappointment, bad news and all negative concerns one can ever think of. You have this but you don’t have that. It looks a bit biased; as if to say, it favours a particular set of people and punishes others. People seem to go around with baggages of misfortune, hurt, pain, stress, anger, and resentment – products of negativity. Everything may look like it is falling apart. If you find yourself in this category or know anyone in this category, then this article is for you.
There was a clause that never left our lips in our family when we were growing up and it was – tomorrow will be better. That is Hope! We didn’t have any assurance of what tomorrow was going to bring besides the promises of God in the Bible which we did not know much of but we kept hoping. Do not get to that point where you lose hope, for a person without hope is no better off than a dead man. Always say to yourself, “this is not my end, there is light at the end of this tunnel”.
Ironically, it is over the internet; a person said “the best way to stay happy is to expect nothing”. This is pseudo-reality, a product of an obscene mindset. If we live our lives without expecting good things then how will those good things happen? The problem only lies when we begin to expect things from people; when we begin to put our hope in people. The Bible states clearly “woe to any man who puts his trust in the arm of flesh”.
Many times, disappointment trails on the base of trusting an individual who is not capable of helping us. Man has a feeble mind, logic cannot explain trusting God but in truth, God is the only individual capable of helping man.
You may be sick, broke, jilted, disappointed, jobless, down casted, insulted, marred or be facing any negative thing but be encouraged – Keep Hope Alive. The amazing thing is losing hope doesn’t change the situation, it rather aggravates it. Among the negative effects of hopelessness is stagnation, depression which may eventually lead to suicidal tendencies, etc. while on the other hand, keeping hope works towards changing situations. It is even better to keep hope till the end of a situation than to lose it. The Bible also validates this by mentioning the three unbreakable forces; Faith, Hope and Love.
So dear Reader, am glad to announce to you in particular that tomorrow will surely be better. You must strive to retain inner resilience because that is what will keep you going in bad circumstances until it is over. Keeping hope would be made a lot easier if you are thankful for the things you presently have. You may be having a bad marriage, but be thankful that you even have a marriage in the first place (many people are praying and fasting to get married). You may be totally broke but be thankful that you are alive and well (many are in the grave and on hospital beds). You may be sick but be thankful that you are not dead. Your attitude towards anything determines your lot in it. Have a positive attitude about everything and faster than you know it, your situation will change.
Do this quick activity at you leisure time. Take a sheet of paper and rule a line in the middle demarcating two columns; write “Good Situations” in the first column and “Bad Situations” in the second column. Honestly fill those columns and you would be amazed at how many good situations are in your life.
Don’t be among those who know and don’t do. Knowledge without application is a waste. So get to work. Build back that dead HOPE and keep it ALIVE!
by: Maryam Otsokwa
