Clearpath.Life
  • Home
  • Prayers & Psalms
    • Prayers & Psalms

      All Singing – A Movement Meditation

      November 15, 2019

      Prayers & Psalms

      Prayer and Meditation

      November 1, 2019

      Prayers & Psalms

      A Prayer for the Vulnerable

      May 7, 2019

      Prayers & Psalms

      5 Weekly Prayers to Practice During Lent

      March 14, 2019

      Prayers & Psalms

      12 HAIKU Meditations For the Delicately Deliberate

      June 7, 2018

  • Stories
    • Stories

      Servant Series: LARA LANPHIER, DANCING MISSIONARY

      May 30, 2019

      Stories

      Servant Series: SUZANNE WALLACE, DIRECTOR OF LOVING PEOPLE

      May 24, 2019

      Stories

      Servant Stories: THE THOMPSON’S FOSTER-TO-ADOPT JOURNEY

      May 7, 2019

      Stories

      Intrusions of Grace: LESSONS FROM AN UBER DRIVER

      February 7, 2019

      Stories

      Artist Spotlight: BRIAN HALL, ARTIST & SONGWRITER

      November 14, 2018

  • Text
    • Text

      The First “Friendsgiving”?

      November 28, 2019

      Text

      Taking it for Granted

      April 11, 2019

      Text

      Jesus, Royal Servant: THE PARADOX OF SERVANTHOOD

      April 4, 2019

      Text

      Film Analysis: THE REVENANT and the Redemption of…

      March 28, 2019

      Text

      Transactional vs. Relational Repentance: ASH WEDNESDAY

      March 6, 2019

  • Art
    • Art

      The First “Friendsgiving”?

      November 28, 2019

      Art

      All Singing – A Movement Meditation

      November 15, 2019

      Art

      Good Friday – Christ’s Passion on Display: A…

      April 19, 2019

      Art

      Thursday of Mysteries – Jesus, the Passover Punching…

      April 18, 2019

      Art

      Film Review: UP, A Discovery of Grief

      November 7, 2019

  • About
    • The Why
    • The Team
    • Clearpath Dallas
  • Store

Clearpath.Life

  • Home
  • Prayers & Psalms
    • Prayers & Psalms

      All Singing – A Movement Meditation

      November 15, 2019

      Prayers & Psalms

      Prayer and Meditation

      November 1, 2019

      Prayers & Psalms

      A Prayer for the Vulnerable

      May 7, 2019

      Prayers & Psalms

      5 Weekly Prayers to Practice During Lent

      March 14, 2019

      Prayers & Psalms

      12 HAIKU Meditations For the Delicately Deliberate

      June 7, 2018

  • Stories
    • Stories

      Servant Series: LARA LANPHIER, DANCING MISSIONARY

      May 30, 2019

      Stories

      Servant Series: SUZANNE WALLACE, DIRECTOR OF LOVING PEOPLE

      May 24, 2019

      Stories

      Servant Stories: THE THOMPSON’S FOSTER-TO-ADOPT JOURNEY

      May 7, 2019

      Stories

      Intrusions of Grace: LESSONS FROM AN UBER DRIVER

      February 7, 2019

      Stories

      Artist Spotlight: BRIAN HALL, ARTIST & SONGWRITER

      November 14, 2018

  • Text
    • Text

      The First “Friendsgiving”?

      November 28, 2019

      Text

      Taking it for Granted

      April 11, 2019

      Text

      Jesus, Royal Servant: THE PARADOX OF SERVANTHOOD

      April 4, 2019

      Text

      Film Analysis: THE REVENANT and the Redemption of…

      March 28, 2019

      Text

      Transactional vs. Relational Repentance: ASH WEDNESDAY

      March 6, 2019

  • Art
    • Art

      The First “Friendsgiving”?

      November 28, 2019

      Art

      All Singing – A Movement Meditation

      November 15, 2019

      Art

      Good Friday – Christ’s Passion on Display: A…

      April 19, 2019

      Art

      Thursday of Mysteries – Jesus, the Passover Punching…

      April 18, 2019

      Art

      Film Review: UP, A Discovery of Grief

      November 7, 2019

  • About
    • The Why
    • The Team
    • Clearpath Dallas
  • Store
0
Text

Hope is Night Vision

written by Randall Worley April 25, 2018
Hope is Night Vision

“Hope is being able to see that there is light despite all of the darkness.” – Desmond Tutu

The overall cynicism and pessimism of our times are so pervasive that they seek to infect even the most hopeful among us. Cynicism and pessimism are generally accepted as a state of being realistic about circumstances or ideals. But these diabolical twins are actually unrealistic and cowardly because they remove the responsibility to try.

The metaphor of darkness in scripture often refers to ignorance. Ignorance covers the world like a blanket, and there seems to be scarcely a hole in it anywhere. It’s true that people who are intoxicated with ignorance can easily find a problem in any solution. The plague of darkness that fell upon Egypt was described as being so benighted it could be “felt.” That sounds very familiar, doesn’t it? – when you are trying to remain hopeful in the midst of so much hopelessness.

“The people dwelling in darkness have seen a great light, and for those dwelling in the region and shadow of death, on them a light has dawned” (Isaiah 9:2).

Hope enables us to see in the dark. Owls have been a symbol of wisdom for centuries and known for their ability to see in the darkest night. Darkness blinds humans, but it is the owl’s element. These nocturnal sages also have the aura of knowing something we don’t. With binocular vision, they see 5 times better than humans, giving them the ability to detect the faintest amount of light in total darkness. Early Christian texts used the owl as a metaphor for Jesus, who appeared in the darkness of sin and showed humans the way to salvation. 

Hope is an alternative consciousness that can awaken a culture asleep in the darkness.

“Hope, on one hand, is an absurdity too embarrassing to speak about, for it flies in the face of all those claims we have been told are facts. Hope is the refusal to accept the reading of reality which is the majority opinion…On the other hand, hope is subversive, for it limits the grandiose pretension of the present, daring to announce that the present to which we have all made commitments is now called into question.” –Walter Brueggemann 

Thoreau captures the essence of living in hope when he said, “It’s not what you look at that matters, it’s what you see.” Hope is not some dreamy biblical optimism that insulates us from the real world. Rather, it is an imagination that has been harnessed by faith. It has been said, “you will always see what you’re looking for.” I would add that what you focus on determines what you miss.

We’ve all received the well-intentioned advice to “stay positive.” The greater the challenge, the more this glass-half-full wisdom can come across as Pollyanna-ish (an excessively or blindly optimistic person). It’s tough to stay focused on the positive when positivity seems like nothing more than wishful thinking.

To maintain our equilibrium, what we hope FOR should always be second to WHO we hope in. The psalmist David shared a helpful journal entry on the difference.

“Show me, Lord, my life’s end
and the number of my days;
let me know how fleeting my life is.
You have made my days a mere handbreadth;
the span of my years is as nothing before you.
Everyone is but a breath,
even those who seem secure.
Surely everyone goes around like a mere phantom;
in vain they rush about, heaping up wealth
without knowing whose it will finally be.
But now, Lord, what do I look for?
My hope is in you (Psalm 39:4-7).

Hope-fully Yours,
Randall Worley

 

Image by Ryan Pouncy.

Share this:

  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Email
Hopehope in godRandall Worley
0 comment
0
Facebook Twitter Google + Pinterest
Randall Worley
Randall Worley

Randall and his wife Penny have three adult sons who are all uniquely involved in various aspects of lifestyle ministry. Author of “Brushstrokes of Grace” and “Wandering and Wondering”

previous post
A History to Hope
next post
What the Church Can Learn from ROB BELL

You may also like

The First “Friendsgiving”?

November 28, 2019

Taking it for Granted

April 11, 2019

Jesus, Royal Servant: THE PARADOX OF SERVANTHOOD

April 4, 2019

Film Analysis: THE REVENANT and the Redemption of...

March 28, 2019

Transactional vs. Relational Repentance: ASH WEDNESDAY

March 6, 2019

Intrusions of Grace: LESSONS FROM AN UBER DRIVER

February 7, 2019

8 Meditative Prayer Postures to Experience Presence

January 24, 2019

On Waiting…

January 17, 2019

Everyday Monasticism: A CALL TO THE ABIDING LIFE

January 10, 2019

Film Analysis: Hope in SHAWSHANK REDEMPTION

March 1, 2019

Leave a Comment Cancel Reply

Connect

Facebook Twitter Instagram Spotify

Instagram

No images found!
Try some other hashtag or username

Tweets

The First “Friendsgiving”? https://t.co/iSvbUpvwHZ https://t.co/YlrEQt5XHS

28-Nov-2019

Reply Retweet Favorite
All Singing – A Movement Meditation https://t.co/uCkDHXHdoD https://t.co/f2eAbsh7Cj

15-Nov-2019

Reply Retweet Favorite
Film Review: UP, A Discovery of Grief https://t.co/xMz7ezq4nv https://t.co/tNex8xFLIP

07-Nov-2019

Reply Retweet Favorite
Prayer and Meditation https://t.co/UwUOmQ2IgM https://t.co/IMOuuQf1gt

01-Nov-2019

Reply Retweet Favorite
Servant Series: LARA LANPHIER, DANCING MISSIONARY https://t.co/IoLgusS53o https://t.co/zdgWQ6jRgS

30-May-2019

Reply Retweet Favorite

Popular Posts

  • Rethinking Hell: MY JOURNEY THROUGH DOUBT AND FAITH

  • Artist Spotlight: YA’KE DISCUSSES FILM AND FAITH

  • ClearPath.Life in 50 Seconds

  • I Am Repenting: A PASTOR’S INDIFFERENCE TO THE OPPRESSED

Join Our Newsletter

Subscribe for our Newsletter for new articles, stories & media. Join our table of conversation!

Categories

  • Art (42)
  • Featured (9)
  • Popular (4)
  • Prayers & Psalms (9)
  • Stories (11)
  • Text (62)

Stay in the Know!

Subscribe for our Newsletter for new articles, stories & media. Join our table of conversation!

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Instagram
  • Spotify
Footer Logo

Developed by Runway Advisors

loading Cancel
Post was not sent - check your email addresses!
Email check failed, please try again
Sorry, your blog cannot share posts by email.