Is there anyone who doesn’t need hope?? We all need hope, but we feel the need for hope acutely in times of pain, distress, or need. We put our hands together, get on our knees and beg God to grant us that special grace we call hope.
Today, I included two spiritual tools to assist you (and that means all of us) in tapping into the vast reservoir of spiritual energy of hope.
- The Morning Prayer for Hope
- “What is Hope”, a spiritual introspection of the power of hope in your life.
Morning Prayer for Hope
The splendor of the virtue of hope lights my way and leads me to you today.
God, I know that you are the architect of my soul. You chose to place the power of hope in me, and I know that you expect me to be a whole fragment of your hope for the world. I know that I am most happy, healthy, and holy when I’m in love with you in hope. Let me greet this day with the enthusiasm and optimism that flows only from your hope. Help me always respond in your hope, and not react with my shadow or compulsion. The splendor of the virtue of hope lights my way and leads me to you today, and in that journey I know I will find healing for my brokenness in hope; I will find it in me and around me, all reflections of you, dear Lord. Propelled by your gift of hope I have absolute assurance that your power of love can never be eclipsed; there is no power in the universe stronger than your love. I have a deep conviction that your love will always remain the compelling power in the cosmos. AMEN
What is Hope?
Hope is your primary spiritual strength in the believing function of your personality. Your job is to scrape away any and all foreign elements that may be encrusting your premier spiritual strength from freely and fully manifesting its healing power in your mind, heart, and spirit. This exercise helps you see your spiritual strength of Hope more clearly and begins to open the windows of your mind letting in the light, the power of Hope...your spiritual strength from God.
Ponder on the following points which describe Hope. After 5-10 minutes, respond to the questions listed below.
Hope is...
1. ...possessing the honest assurance that God in is charge.
- ...conviction that love will remain the compelling force in life.
- ...recognizing the promise of ultimate fairness, goodness, and cheer.
- ...allowing yourself the perfect expectation that God's will prevails.
- ...owning spiritual optimism and celestial confidence as one's own.
Questions
- Which one of these descriptions of Hope seems to "hit home" with you more than the others? Describe.
- Which one seems most necessary and appropriate for you to
incorporate into your life and your beliefs core right now? Explain.
- Rank order the descriptions from 1 to 5. Rank #1 the description that you woud like the world to learn the most. Rank the others in a similar fashion.
The prayer comes from my book “Prayers for Spiritual Strength” that contains 90 prayers of petition to live a virtuous life.
The “What is Hope” spiritual exercise is taken from “The Spiritual Strengths Immersion Program”.