Hope and Fear

“The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not overcome it.”
(John 1:5, NRSV)

            Just a week ago, in the dark underbelly of a plane, a bomb was crossing the globe, progressing from Yemen towards its destination in Chicago. There was a dull sound of wind rushing by the cool hull of the plane. In the cold, there was an ominous stillness; there was an ironic calm. In this tranquil, quiet darkness a single spark could have set off a deadly flash. This fatal light could have erupted in the darkness.

This deadly weapon could have so easily gone undetected. The clock counted down as this weapon traveled towards its destination, and officials weren’t able to disarm it until there were only seventeen minutes left on the timer.

It’s so easy to be afraid. What if that bomb had been on a plan that I was riding? Or that my parents were on? Or my brother? Or my sister? It is so easy to be afraid.

            In the darkness, we can so easily imagine a terrorist’s bomb exploding. When we find ourselves in the dark, we become nervous. When we are surrounded by peace, we look for an oncoming assault. We are acutely fearful; however, living in fear is nothing new. Our parents’ generation imagined the flash of a nuclear bomb in the midst of a dark night. However, it is much more challenging for us to imagine Jesus’ enlightening glory bringing beauty into our dark world.

            Nonetheless, the fear that can so easily overcome us and the hope that Jesus calls us to are both simply lenses through which we can look at our futures. We can take a guarded position, and protect ourselves by building walls around ourselves and expecting the worst. Alternatively, we can faithfully open our souls to God and forge bridges into the world around us.

            Of these two options, fear is much easier for us. When we worry about our futures, we take every precaution possible to unsure that things will turn out well. This self-reliance gives us the feeling of having control, however, it can also make it so easy to cut God out of our lives because we stop looking to him for strength. Being fearful and trying to protect ourselves makes it easier for us to not look to our neighbors for support, which makes it easier for us to forget about those who Jesus called us to love. We build defensive walls, leaving ourselves as the focus of our attention.

Fear has the potential to become very egocentric. We fear for our jobs. We fear for our successes. We fear for our finances. We fear for our family. We fear for our friends.

And, we forget about God and neighbors.

            On the other hand, hope revolves around God. We hope for a better future, putting our faith in God. We hope for happiness for our family, leaving God as the focus of our attention. We hope for eternal joy, putting our trust in God. When we live hopeful lives, we foster optimistic relationships. We connect to those around us and leave ourselves vulnerable to be touched by God. We build bridges with our neighbors and are able to look for the reflection of Christ in the faces of those around us.

            Unfortunately, living hopefully doesn’t come naturally to most of us. We need to foster and care for our hope as we would nurture a flowering plant. Hope is rooted in faith. Can we have faith that God loves us? Can we have faith that God has the power to bring about good in this world, in our lives, and in our souls?

Hope is fertilized with humility. Can we accept that there are problems that are not our fault? Can we accept that without God, we are powerless to bring about good in the world? Can we accept that we don’t find power in ourselves, but in the Holy Sprit working through us?

            Living with hope has the power to transform our outlook on the world. We don’t have to flee from every flash of light, expecting the worst. We don’t need to fear the dark. When we find ourselves in the dark, we can search with hope for the light that shines in the darkness.