Lately, I’ve been sensing a general rise of hopelessness — and not only among non-Christians, but in the Church as well. I can understand why many are feeling this way. The battles have been unrelenting: Just when we think things in our nation can’t get any worse, they do get worse; whenever we’re believing that we’ve overcome some personal challenge or battle, it seems that yet another one pops up right around the corner.

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The daily headlines proclaim school shootings and more school shootings. A former U.S. president has been indicted. We hear threats of nuclear war. There are endless numbers of riots and violent protests across our land. Our borders are unsafe.

It does seem as if the whole world has gone crazy! In such environments as this, it is very easy to lose hope. And it is correspondingly difficult to hold fast to any expectation of seeing our nation rescued and made whole again.

In a recent posting of his Give Him 15 devotional, Dutch Sheets writes:

In my book, The Power of Hope, I state that “Hope does in our hearts what seeds do in the earth. Without hope, life is sterile and unfruitful; dreams won’t be conceived; destinies won’t be realized. Hope is essential because it is the seed, the starting line, the genesis, and the launch pad. It is, in fact, the incubator where faith is birthed: ‘Faith is the substance of things hoped for,’ God tells us (Hebrews 11:1 KJV, emphasis added). If there is no hope for the future, there will be no faith to face it — let alone build it.”

What Hopelessness Looks Like

If we have no hope for our future — there will be no faith to face what is before us or to continue fighting for the restoration of our nation or our families. For this reason alone, we must not lose hope.

How would you know if you’ve slipped into a place of hopelessness? Well, you might start speaking or thinking like this: “Things will never get better; I don’t see things ever improving; there’s no point in praying or believing anymore; look around — the world is getting worse; I see things only getting worse in the future, no matter how much I pray.”

A friend shared with me recently that this sort of thinking amounts to an anti-Christ spirit. It is surely anti-Christ thinking. If you’re thinking things like those, even in the privacy of your heart, you must come against hopelessness. We cannot afford to lose hope. Hope is vital to the life of a believer; hope is the force that drives us to continue to fight for change. Hope in God and His promises is what keeps us from retreating when things otherwise appear impossible.

The truth is that we can do all things through Christ who strengthens us. Our truth is that all things are possible with God; and with Him, nothing is impossible. We know and we have seen: The prayers of a righteous man or woman are powerful and effective, dynamic in their working; God hears when we cry out, and when we know that He hears us, we know also that we will have what we’ve asked.

What Hopefulness Looks Like

Hope is not a feeling — it is a mindset. Therefore, we have everything we need in the word of God to change such a mindset. How? By renewing our mind to the word of God and His promises, which will cause hope to come alive in us again. Thankfully, the Bible is chock full of hope!

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).

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead (1 Peter 1:3).

“For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope” (Jeremiah 29:11).

These are only a few of the Bible passages that concern hope; there are many, many more. We must take these scriptures and use them to combat the feelings and thoughts of hopelessness. When those thoughts come to mind, we must speak the word of God over and into our situation. This act alone will renew our minds to the truth. We must resist the devil and his lies. If we continually listen to the news media or to other forms of twisted “truth” from the enemy, we will lose hope. But if we keep our hope firmly placed on the truth of the word of God and Jesus, we will continue to expect to see the goodness of God in the land of the living.

God’s Goodness Brings Hope

Our belief in the promise of His goodness will keep us firmly planted in hope.

I would have lost heart, unless I had believed that I would see the goodness of the LORD in the land of the living (Psalm 27:13 NKJV).

The word goodness in that passage means “all that is good in God” — the best that God has to offer. We do not lose hope for this one reason: We are fully persuaded, regardless of what we see or what we hear, that God is going to give us His best. Amen. His goodness will follow us all the days of our lives, and we will see that goodness poured out if we refuse to give up. Amen and amen.

And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up (Galatians 6:9).

We will reap, if we refuse to quit; if we hold fast to hope. Surely there is a future, and your hope will not be cut off (Prov 23:18). We have a promise from God: Our hope will not be cut off. God’s hope within us will not disappoint. Our part is to hold fast to that hope — no matter what.

If you find yourself questioning the future God has for you or for our nation, let me recommend that you begin to declare the word of God concerning hope over your life every single day. Do this until you are filled to overflowing with a solid, unshakable hope in God.

Then, expect to see His goodness — for it is surely going to come upon you.

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Kim Potter is a writer and the founder of A New Thing Ministries, which sends a daily teaching to thousands of people all around the world. Her articles have appeared on The Elijah List, in Charisma Magazine, and on Spirit Fuel and iBelieve.com. Kim’s message is one of hope. She speaks to the hearts of those who have grown discouraged or disappointed by the circumstances of life, to impart hope. Her daily inspirational writings are available at www.anewthingministries.com. Photo Credit: Canva.