In Advent we are called to exercise hope as we look forward to the two comings of Christ: at Christmas and at the end of time. But the reality of hopelessness and depression in the world seem to make hoping difficult. Someone once said to me: “Father, I have been depressed for a long time now and have lost motivation to do anything.” Another wrote me: “Please father, I need counselling and prayers. I have been applying for jobs but nothing is forthcoming and I am slowly losing my confidence for I have always prayed fervently.”
Facts have shown that human hope is linked to the vital needs of Attachment, Mastery and Survival, and when these are not realised we become depressed and hopeless. Have you lost hope in everything? Are you depressed? Depression does not respect status or creed, it can affect anyone. I bring you this message: There is surely a future hope for you, and your hope will not be cut short (Prov 23:18). If you wish to know how to get rid of this cancer in your life, continue reading slowly…
Cf. Romans 15:4-9
Everything that was written long ago in the scriptures was meant to teach us something about hope from the examples scripture gives of how people who did not give up were helped by God. And may he who helps us when we refuse to give up, help you all to be tolerant with each other, following the example of Christ Jesus, so that united in mind and voice you may give glory to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ…
POINTS FOR REFLECTION
1. Child of God, St Paul tells us one of the purpose of Scriptures: to teach something about hope. The events of Divine action and stories of the lives of persons who refuse to give up are evidences we can rely on as basis for our hope and power of resilience in difficult moments. This is important so that we don’t have false hopes- a hope that is based on ignorance. But that our hope be justified when the hoping person knows and accepts what God has revealed about the probability of hope fulfillment. God has never said we shall live without difficulties on earth, but he shall rescue us from adversities!
For this reason the Catechism of the Catholic Church defines hope thus:
“Hope is the theological virtue by which we desire the Kingdom of Heaven and eternal life as our happiness, placing our trust in Christ’s promises and relying not on our own strength, but on the help of the grace of the Holy Spirit. ‘The Holy Spirit…poured out upon us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior, so that we might be justified by His grace and become heirs in hope of eternal life’” (CCC 1817).
HOW TO OVERCOME HOPELESSNESS AND DEPRESSION
To nip it from the bud, you need to understand the causes of hopelessness and depression. According to Anthony and Henry, (authors of the book: Hope in the Age of Anxiety) facts have shown that human hope is linked to the vital needs of Attachment, Mastery and Survival:
- Attachment: a hope for physical proximity, intimacy and emotional bonding, and spiritual unity with God.
- Mastery: a hope for productivity and accomplishments.
- Survival: a hope for overcoming physical challenges, anxiety, loss, and fear, and building resiliency.
If these needs are met or we answer positively to these demands we assure ourselves that all is well and act from that assumption. On the contrary, we become depressed and hopeless:
- when we don’t feel connected to the universe: people or God (Attachment),
- when we don’t feel a sense of help or collaboration (Mastery), and
- when we don’t feel protected or safe (Survival).
Practices to Spark the virtue of Hope in you:
- Pray the Act of Hope each morning: O my God, relying on Thy infinite goodness and promises, I hope to obtain pardon of my sins, the help of Thy grace, and life everlasting, through the merits of Jesus Christ, my Lord and Redeemer. Amen.
- Think of someone or connect with someone who is ‘hope-filled.’ What does this person say or do that indicates that he/she is full of hope? This person could be your pastor, priest, friend, parent, etc.
- Read the Bible: meditate on the lives of some people in the Bible who lived by hope and read their story. Queen Esther, Job, St. Paul, etc.
- Read the lives of the saints and meditate on how they lived in hope. Examples are: St. Peregrine, St. Anthony of Padua, St. Josephine Bakhita, St. Teresa Benedicta (Edith Stein), St. Padre Pio. St. Padre Pio’s famous words are: “Pray, Hope, and Don’t Worry.”
- Pray the Psalms always: The psalms teach us to fix our hope in God, and opens the door to praying with the Word of God. Pray the following Psalms, connect to the verses that speaks about hope and commit them to memory: Psalm 11 Psalm 16 Psalm 33 Psalm 42 Psalm 62 Psalm 71 Psalm 78 Psalm 119 Psalm 130 Psalm 131 Psalm 146 Psalm 147.
- Memorize Scripture passages that speaks of hope in God and pray with it:
- Jeremiah 29:11 “For I know the plans I have for you, says the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope”
- Psalm 40:2 “I waited patiently for the Lord; He inclined to me and heard my cry.”
- Psalm 146:5 “For You O Lord are my Hope…my trust is in You.”
- Hebrews 6:19 “Hope is the sure and steadfast anchor of the soul.”
- Romans 15:13 “May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope.”
- Romans 5:5 “Hope does not disappoint us, because God’s love has been poured into our hearts by the Holy Spirit Who has been given to us.”
TASK
Do the following practices above for 21 days and see yourself experiencing the effects of hope, which are: Confidence, peace of heart, interior joy, optimism, vision, a change from
a negative attitude to a positive attitude. There’s always hope for God’s people!
I pray for you:
May the Word you have read spark the light of hope that dispels every darkness of depression and hopelessness in Jesus name.
As scripture says in Isaiah 11:1: “A shoot will come up from the stump of Jesse; from his roots a Branch will bear fruit.” I declare:
your hope shall not be cut short, but your future shall be bright, in Jesus name! Out of nothing the One who creates out of nothing shall cause abundance of favour to springforth in your life, in Jesus name. Amen.
