 Realistic Hope in Pessimistic Times
Taking up residence in the house of faith.
by Jan Johnson
Mike and Gina were disappointed. They’d planned to buy their “dream house,” but their loan fell through. They continued to search and found a home, but it was nothing like their first choice. They decided to make the best of it and see what happened. Shortly after they moved in, Mike and Gina discovered several advantages this “rebound home” had over their first choice. With the financial decline, the other house would have lost a lot of its worth and the payments would have been too steep. Mike and Gina were actually grateful their original plan did not work out. They could change their attitude quickly because they didn’t let their expectations ruin the idea that God can bring good through anything. This steadiness of purpose is difficult to attain. Instead it’s easier to choose either bleak despair (“Nothing works for me”) or blind optimism (“I know everything will work out”). Often we shift back and forth between the two extremes. But how do we move away from riding that seesaw of despair/idealism to maintaining an outlook that sees beyond our day-to-day circumstances and roller-coaster emotions? How do we move from living in the house of fear to the house of faith? Here are some ways to begin.
Moving to faith Expect problems to occur. Accepting and even expecting life to be full of challenges keeps us from sliding into despair when trouble strikes. Often it’s the sting of the surprise that stuns us. Peter warned the early Christians, “Dear friends, do not be surprised at the painful trial you are suffering, as though something strange were happening to you” (1 Peter 4:12). When we’re surprised by problems, it intensifies our pain. We’re caught off guard by good friends who reject us, marriages that fail, and trusted leaders who lose their tempers. Our naiveté causes our high expectations to undo us. Sometimes in an effort to witness, Christians promise people an unrealistically happy life if they trust Christ. We talk about the fruit of the Spirit as if it’s a package that arrives on the day of their conversion. This isn’t what God promises; God promises to walk with us through the dark valleys, not eliminate them. Consider the merits of change. We find change threatening. Even positive changes, such as marriage or purchasing a new home, increase stress. Because of her openness to change, Ruth adjusted relatively well to life in Judah. She gleaned in the fields with the poor and then followed Naomi’s advice in winning the admiration of Boaz, who later became her husband (2:2, 3; 3:1-18). Considering the positive and negative aspects of a specific change can give us the fresh perspective we need to continue. What is the upside of the supposed wrong decision? Why might the supposed good decision not be so great after all? We could even see how the change might be good and might open opportunities we would otherwise miss. Adopt a spirit of determination. A favorite Bible verse that people quote is “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me” (Philippians 4:13, NKJV). Usually it’s quoted to justify wearing ourselves out and avoiding proper rest, which ignores the context. From a dirty prison cell, the jailed scholar Paul summarized his approach to life:
Paul’s determination to preach the Christian faith to the Roman world was not dampened by the fact that he was chained to a Roman guard. Other people may have thought that his work was on hold while he sat in jail, but Paul seemed to conclude that he was simply preaching to a new audience of Roman soldiers. Feed on positive thoughts. Another astounding mindset of Paul was a focus on what was wise and good and lovely. Again, from his prison cell, he encouraged the Philippians to fill their minds by meditating “on things true, noble, reputable, authentic, compelling, gracious — the best, not the worst; the beautiful, not the ugly; things to praise, not things to curse” (v. 8, The Message). Paul wasn’t proposing an unrealistic “Don’t worry — be happy” approach. In the same letter he mentioned problems caused by a dispute between two people To maintain a positive focus, I keep what a friend calls my “foot warmer” file. It includes congratulatory cards, thank you notes, and words of encouragement that celebrate how God can work through an ordinary person like me. They warm my spirit just as thick socks warm my feet on a cold night. One of my “foot warmers” is the impressive business card of a young man I taught in Bible school many years ago. Then he was a shy, disinterested high school student on the fringes of gang activity. All those encouraging words, pats on the back, and sluggish conversations over the years eventually paid off. When I need to focus on positive aspects of my ministry, I look at this card. Stay open to the unknown factor. Circumstances may cause us to make comments such as “That friend ignored me” or “I just need to change jobs.” But later we discover that our friend didn’t even see us and that our overbearing boss is being replaced. There’s so much we don’t know. Even when we think we know, God might be working behind the scenes. Just as “There is a way that seems right to a man, but in the end it leads to death” (Proverbs 14:12), there is often a way that seems wrong to a person, but its end is the way of life. A lot of what we do is guesses and hunches. We do better when we humbly move ahead a step at a time, listening for guidance and being open to things we have no knowledge or understanding about. Depending on God runs counter to our culture that trains us to manage time, form goals, and map out strategies. While organizing our lives is good, we can keep our minds open that God “leads me in the paths of righteousness” (Psalm 23:3, NKJV) — not necessarily telling us the destination, but inviting us to follow along and usually helping us see only the next step.
Realism and optimism All these attitudes support each other. When we face challenges, it’s time to feed on positive thoughts. When a change seems untimely, we rely on the unknown factor. Jesus alluded to this combined approach by saying, “Be as shrewd as snakes and as innocent as doves” (Matthew 10:16). Armed with this shrewd realism and innocent optimism, we will neither ignore problems nor become consumed by them. We may even decide they were just what we needed to move forward. Jan Johnson writes from Simi, CA. All Scripture quotations are taken from the New International Version, unless otherwise noted. Scripture quotation noted The Message taken from The Message. Copyright © 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002. Used by permission of NavPress Publishing Group.
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