Still Preoccupied with Hope
Easter will be here soon. This year the approaching holiday has me thinking about many things. Spending time with family and friends. Celebrating at church. Figuring out when it is safe to give babies candy. (I’m a new grandpa; this is information I need to know!)
But the thing I think about most is hope.
Hope is Important in Challenges
In the middle of challenging situations, it can be hard to hang on to hope. Especially when the challenges seem to keep coming, with no end in sight. This is the part of the Easter story I am focused on right now. The part before the celebration.
Before the miraculous resurrection described in the Bible, Christ is dead and buried, his followers confused and grieving. What did they do then? They got together. They comforted each other and took comfort in being together. Then a small group of women went to the cemetery to tend to Christ’s body, a job both ceremonial and practical.
Hope: The Power to Keep Going
And that trip to the cemetery is where the celebration part of the Easter story begins. But for me, the poignant “before the celebration” time is what I am concentrating on this year. It’s a reminder to me that sometimes, hope requires me to do something. Whether that is offering or accepting comfort or doing the next thing on my daily “to do” list.
Hope can encourage and empower us to keep moving forward, because we don’t know when or how the challenges we face will resolve. What I learned from my preoccupation with hope at Easter this year, is that what hope enables us to do during difficulties is – keep going.
Hope Gives Us Power to DO SOMETHING
So this Easter, I would encourage you to think about hope and the power it gives us to DO something. Whether that means offering comfort to those around you, or just the ability to keep moving forward.
We could all use a little more hope these days. The Westlark Advisors Team offers warm wishes for a happy Easter, full of the encouraging power of hope!
Not knowing when the Dawn will come,
I open every Door,
~Emily Dickinson
Hope at Easter – the Power to Keep Going
By JD Buss
