Hope. If you're like me, you use this word at least ten times a day: I hope my business prospers. I hope my kids grow up strong, healthy and happy. I hope my parents don't get divorced. I hope my grama recovers from pneumonia. I hope Johnny asks me to the prom. I hope I'm not late for work.
During the Battle of Lake Erie in 1813, Oliver Hazard Perry, commander of the USS Lawrence "gave up the ship," in blatant disregard of the ship's famed battle flag which emblazoned the opposite command. As the USS Lawrence began submerging in defeat, Perry leapt through a portal of hope by rowing a life boat across the fire stormed sea to an allied ship, the smaller USS Niagara. Once there, he commandeered the crew of the Niagara and turned a losing battle into a victory that captured the entire enemy squadron. Hope of a better outcome than the one that was unfolding in his midst caused Perry to act resolutely on the next course of action.
Hope is the doorway to faith and nothing good ever came out of a faithless attitude. We dare to believe in something good by first stepping over the threshold of hope. Hope is the stuff that moves us towards our dreams. Big dreamers live in hope.
Hope fuels creativity. When we find ourselves in seemingly hopeless situations, it is love that comes to our rescue, restoring our hope and moving us in a new direction. A better way, we realize, must be just around the corner. Hope moves us to look around that corner for the innovative answers. Creative thinkers are always hopeful.
Hope leads us to the Divine. Confusion, disillusion and despair are thieves, robbing us of hope, but seeking "good orderly direction" places us face-to-face with God. Hope looms large in the mind of the wise and casts light on an otherwise wayward, destructive or dangerous path. Good leaders remain hopeful in dire situations. Oliver Hazard Perry was better than good. He demonstrated great leadership the moment he boarded the USS Niagara mid-way through a losing battle. His hope permeated the hearts of the crew on the smaller vessel and drew out of them the valor and might necessary to change the course of history. Great leaders cast the light of hope over his or her constituents in all situations.
Feeling hopeless? Remember, feelings are not facts and hope is your answer. Find it here: Psalm 62:5
www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Psalm%2062:5&version=ESV