“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 15:13, English Standard Version)

The God of the Bible is supposed to be a God of hope.  Most of us who say that we believe the Bible is the written Word of God at least give lip service to this idea.

However, trying times reveal to each of us whether “the God of hope” is a real belief, or simply a pleasant notion.  And this is most definitely a trying time.

In a sense, hope looks forward.  Christianity is often criticized for being a backward-looking religion.  I suppose that, in a sense, this is true.  We do look back to creation and to redemption.  On the other hand, Christianity is often thought of as (and criticized for) being about “pie in the sky in the sweet by and by when you die.”  Sometimes we do indeed look back and forward too much—or at least wrongly.  Is hope just escapism?  I hope not!

But one of the things we need to do is to hope right here, right now.

I hear someone say, “Wait a minute!  Isn’t hope itself forward-looking at its core?  How can you say that hope is right here and right now?”

Hope does often look forward in time.  But primarily, hope looks upward.  Hope looks at the God who is bigger than our problems, no matter what those problems are.  Covid-19 is a serious business.  However, I believe that God is more serious still.

Then too, hope is a present-moment mindset and heart-set activity because hope takes place in the present.  Like Planning, Hope’s practical partner, Hope operates in the present.  Without hope, who would plan or do anything?  When I get out of bed in the morning, Hope and Faith help me to put my feet on the floor, telling me that the floor is still there.  Without at least a little present hope, no one would be able to do anything in the now, to try to make the future better.

So, my dear fellow-believers in Hope, it is time to put up or shut up.  If we have hope in God or science or anything else, it is time to base our actions on that hope.

Yesterday, I was thinking of a former co-worker of my wife who volunteered to go to New York to serve as a nurse.  And I thought, what can I do?  After all, I am elderly myself.  Aside from staying in and trying not to get infected (or infecting anyone else, if I already am infected), what do I have to offer this world?

The problem with asking yourself hard questions is that, sometimes, God or your better angels, or the universe answers you.  I immediately thought of several things I could do.

I can encourage, right now, everyone with whom I come into respectfully distanced contact.  My neighbors, my 12-step friends, non-addict friends, Facebook friends—the list is a lot longer than I initially thought.  A good friend texted me today, telling me how special I am to him.  I feel the same way toward him.  Hoping that I can make a difference by expressing appreciation for people is a very present help right now, both for those I appreciate and for the appreciator who is me.

I can help a few people financially.  My wife and I are far from wealthy, but we do have a bit of money still coming in.  And then there are the government relief checks.  We have what we need.  Our house and cars are paid for.  Why not give away some (if not all) of this extra money?  Why not indeed!  Hope—when it is real—leads to hopeful and helpful actions.

And then there is this website.  Why not encourage readers with it?  Why not put in writing some funny stories, some hopeful stories, some uplifting thoughts?  Why not indeed!