Sowing Hope (10/08/2021)

[Fourth article in a series on living Christ daily through the prescripts of the Peace Prayer]

“LORD, make me an instrument of your peace…Where there is despair, let me sow hope.” Despair has a human face. It’s not an emotional theory, it is a physical, mental and spiritual reality. We may not see it daily in our circle of family or friends, in our neighborhood or community, but it is real. So very many people struggle in this life with despair, not knowing which way to turn or to whom to turn. Discouraged beyond consolation, often feeling abandoned or isolated, our brothers and sister who experience despair see no path forward, no help coming.

At times despair arises because of natural events such as the total destruction of an area due to earthquakes or storms where all is lost and the individuals cannot see past the destruction. At times despair arises because of poverty with no avenue out and no hope of resources. Imagine watching your child starve or suffer from illness with no access to care. At times despair arises because of choices that led to devastating loses. And at times despair arises because of an earlier trauma that compromises one’s ability to cope. There are so many reasons why despair rises within our modern world. But we have to ask, is there any reason that makes one unworthy of compassion, dignity, and the love of the LORD we carry within us?

We who follow Jesus Christ know of the hope that buoys the spirit even in the darkest of times. For our LORD is faithful and trustworthy. And when we encounter another in despair, we must, out of love, reach out, for our LORD commanded us to love one another as he has loved us. He saved us when we could not save ourselves. And his love sends us out in authentic charity to meet people where they are in faith, hope and love.

We can do so much to be bearers of the Spirit’s grace of hope to those who despair for we know to our core of the depth and breadth of the LORD’s love for each of us and what is possible because of that love. Our kindness, our accompaniment on the journey, our outreach in the form of providing the necessities of life, our respect of the individual, can all sow seeds of hope in the life and spirit of another. Trusting in the LORD, we are called to reach out in love to those who are struggling, to be present to them, to give them our time and to share with them what resources we can. Our witness to Christ through our authentic love of others may seem inadequate, but we believe in Christ’s ability to multiple what is at hand.

Until tomorrow, love well.