Hope is an indispensable ingredient of recovery.
Thomas Carlyle said, “He who has health, has hope; and he who has hope has everything.”
Dr. Dale Archer writes, “The power of hope defines the psychological victim and psychological survivor. As long as a patient, individual, or victim has hope, they can recover from anything and everything. If someone loses hope, unless you can help them get it back, all is lost.”
Job lived off hope. When all was lost, Job was not lost, because he still had hope. We read these verses, from the midst of his misery: “And your life will be brighter than the noonday; its darkness will be like the morning. And you will feel secure, because there is hope; you will look around and take your rest in security” (Job 11:17-19).
Dr. Karyn Hall suggest five practical steps to finding hope:
- Find a clear path.
- Look for role models who have found solutions.
- Do what you already know.
- Perform an act of kindness.
- Turn to your faith.
As long as you have God, you have hope. And as long as you have hope, anything is possible.
Recovery Step: I leave you with the words of Robert Schuller. “Let your hopes, not your hurts, shape your future.”
