I understand that people are bewildered about the state of global and national affairs. There is a feeling that we are all spiraling towards some kind of worldwide cataclysmic event. As one person shared so aptly today, “This is further proof to me that we are speeding towards the zombie apocalypse.” This was said in jest, but partially believed. I don’t buy the zombie thing as an actual possibility, but I do think zombies represent humankind’s historically visible sin of ripping itself apart with violence and chaos.
SO, what shall we do?
Build.
We can invest in our communities, technology, education, healthcare, and a million other important infrastructures, but we must start with something else.
We must build HOPE.
If a room is completely dark due to the doors and windows being shut, the blinds drawn, and the lights kept off the one thing that will breathe in that space is fear. We think we are creating something safe and known. Instead we are building isolation that keeps us from knowing what is happening around us. When all we can see is darkness we rely on memory to brighten our lives. This works for a time, but then we begin to feel like nothing will ever be as good as the past. If we draw that conclusion then instead of taking a peek outside we are the ones holding the doors closed and keeping ourselves in the dark. That is a space where fear thrives.
Hope on the other hand looks at the world, the community, the self and says “Yes, things aren’t right, but I believe that they can get better.”
Hope has to be built.
This is not something that will happen in an instant, in fact it is the long-term play, it takes time. Also, it takes daily, sometimes hourly investment.
Hope is something that can take on failure, disappointment, and heartache. It is the very thing that lift the broken in spirit and give them the ability to find the strength to breath in and out, to take that first step towards something new.
For me that hope has a personal name; Jesus. He has been referred to as the cornerstone that the builders rejected. He has been called many things, but for me when I think about the future He is real hope.
Jesus helps me open the door, open the windows, and look at the difficulties of life and this messy world and know a peace that transcends all that I see.
Through Jesus Hope is built!
Rev. Shawn J. Smith 