CNY Inspirations: Hope adjustments

This feature is coordinated by The Post-Standard/Syracuse.com and InterFaith Works of CNY. Follow this theme and author posted Sunday, Tuesday and Thursday.

Are you hopeful? Or have you abandoned all hope? The late theologian, Lewis Smedes, wrote, “Life is a series of hope adjustments.” We need to get “old hopes in sync with new reality.” If the day-to-day realities are going to keep changing, then all my hopes for world events, for family and friends, and even hopes for myself will need some adjustments in the New Year.

Author Ann Lamott once observed, “Things are not perfect because life isn’t like TV.” It seems that other people’s hopes for health, happiness, friendship and success are all achieved on social media and the Hallmark Channel. And yet we can feel like our own hopes fall short.

It is easy to find ourselves agreeing with Lady Violet Crawley in the Downton Abbey series, “Hope is only a tease designed to prevent us from accepting reality.” However, what if that hope is just out of sync with our reality and it just needs some adjustments?

The choice is not to be hopeless. Instead, we may need to downsize some hopes, turn them in a new direction, or let go of some so that new hopes have room to grow. Maybe you need to stop going it alone, and you need to get some help to make those hopes take shape.

And some hopes just need more time. The Bible prophet Isaiah reads, “those whose hope is in the Lord shall renew their strength…” The Hebrew word there for hope can also mean to wait. In fact, many biblical translations read, “those who wait on the Lord shall renew their strength.” Our hopes often require waiting for the pieces to fall into place. And waiting allows hope to grow. Let’s keep hope alive and make some hope adjustments this year.

The Rev. Paul Bailey, retired Eastwood Baptist Church, Syracuse.