Tuesday, April 1, 2014

Seek Them

I've discovered that the bravest among us are those who hope.

Those souls who find a way to offer up optimism, vision, expectancy.....

Those people who choose to stay in the realm of possibilities and who maintain a keen, ambitious outlook....

They're the ones you want to know.

They're the ones you want to mimic.

Because those of us who tend to err on the side of doubt, despair, and disbelief - we are lacking something.

It's not happiness, or blindness, or naivety.

It's not youthfulness, or greenness, or even truth.

It's courage.
It's work ethic.
It's energy.

Because being pessimistic....is really just a cover up for being lazy.

It's also a coy... for fear.

If we give up on the possibilities.....we don't have to keep striving for them. We don't have to keep fueling our faith. We don't have to overcome.

On the contrary however, if we hold on to hope that good things really could occur, that healings happen, that talents rise, that triumphs come....we have to expend our energies on it.

We have to hang in their....
and stick it out...
and put forth the gumption to pursue.

But those of us who choose discouragement over determination - we tend to let the whole dream go, in the name of being a realist. And because of that - we release ourselves from the burden of hanging on. And we free ourselves from the possibility of disappointment.

While that's safe....and understandable...

it's also a mistake.

It's true.....  A lot of the things we hope for - end up falling flat. Many of the prayers we pray - seemingly go unanswered. A ton of the goals we strive for - remain unreached.

And yes it's true....that being a dreamer alone, or an optimist without work, or a visionary without action.... is just as foolish.

Yes, we should note those things.

But still...

We should all watch the ones who dare to keep an eye on the prospects.

We should emulate the ones who can remain buoyant in choppy waters.

Copy their routines.
Inquire about their stamina.
Seek their endurance and wherewithal through it all.

For they're the ones who will see lots of glee-stealing failures, yes.

But their also the ones who will see the most joy-filled victories.

Ah, friends. He is writing this to me. I think I'm typing this all out here simply for myself.

I'm currently facing painful setbacks physically. Morning after morning I face new pains in new places. And hope is often squashed. And tears easily flow.

So know....

the one punching this out here feels the pangs - just like you do in one way or another.

And I also understand that being hopeful can leave you flailing at times.

Oh, yes it can.

As I mentioned in my last post....

Having hope - can be hurtful.

That's why those who can hold on to it.....are the bravest, most courageous, most Spirit-filled people on the planet.

Let's persist in seeking them out.

Their testimonies and their joy and their faith - will rise up good things in us.

Consider yourself embraced, friend. Hugs and hope and love to you all.

Why are you cast down, O my soul,
    and why are you in turmoil within me?
Hope in God; for I shall again praise him,
    my salvation and my God.
~ Psalm 43:5