Finding Hope When You Feel Hopeless
Reading the news headlines for the past two years has been depressing. Doom. Gloom. Everyone’s in the Zoom Room. (humor intended) Not only have we seen a tremendous upset in our day-to-day routines but we also are suffering from higher levels of anxiety, depression, and suicide. Finding hope when we feel hopeless has become more difficult than ever. Even though we get regular dopamine hits from our handheld devices and the endless supply of cat videos, we are struggling to find hope.
Ways you can find hope when you feel hopeless
DUMP Journal
Write down all the things. Journaling is one of those incredible habits that releases negativity and can help us reframe our lives with a positive outlook. Why do I say DUMP Journal?
- D - Dump, everything you are thinking and feeling for the first 5 minutes about a certain situation. Don’t hold anything back and just let the tears flow if you need to. This helps you release those toxic thoughts and emotions. They have been given a safe place to go.
- U - Uncover, and look to see what the toxic brain dump reveals to you. How are you feeling about things? Did you notice any triggers, people, or situations that caught you off-guard? Learn from what you are going through without judging it. Just observe how you are feeling and why.
- M - Meditate on what you think you can do to alleviate the situation. Then methodically give what you cannot change over to God.
- P - Pray End with Prayer. This is where you give ALL the negative emotions, feelings, and situations over to His plans, purposes, and process.
Evaluate Reality - Not Imaginary Future News
If your brain works like mine, bad news kicks you into an imagination overdrive to the worst-case scenarios. I go from toilet paper shortages to buying a bunker and planting a self-sustaining garden on a windowsill. The endless rehearsing of what terrible thing could happen next robs you of reformatting your thoughts with positive expectancy. Take yourself off of that downward slide into the muck. Look at what is happening in YOUR life. Nevertheless, we must consider global events, we can leave them in the hands of Him who created the world right? Here is an exercise a therapist once taught that helped me be present and stop rehearsing the uncertainty of the future. It’s called the 5-4-3-2-1 grounding exercise.
Taking the time to be in the present moment can help us reduce anxiety and evaluate our current circumstances. We can find hope in the fact that we are alive and living through another day. Tomorrow has its own troubles but we don’t need to focus on those for now. They will come soon enough.
Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own. Matthew 6:34 NIV
Remind Yourself of Victories and Miracles
There is nothing that will build your hope more than reflecting on those times and moments from your past where God showed up and showed off. Here are a few ideas to jog your memory.
- You were able to pay a bill that was due unexpectedly
- Someone you knew was ill and recovered
- You met a new friend who opened a door to a life-giving community
- You had someone call or pray for you when you needed it most
- God restored a relationship that you were unsure could be repaired
- You were able to overcome a hurt through forgiveness
- You got up this morning and were able to breathe. (Yes this is a miracle and a gift) Here is a worship song that is giving me hope that’s on repeat at the moment!
When we reflect on how much God is participating in our lives we get a renewed sense of hope that He’s watching out for us. No matter what we face He is there. He is already prepared for our future. We do not need to fear. When we intentionally focus on God, we are released from the fear of the world. God is faithful. He can deliver us from every form of evil. We can be thrown into a lion’s den, face giants, even be raised from the dead when we trust God.
#1 Way We Find Hope When We Feel Hopeless
Put our trust in God
When we practice "Habits to Hear the Voice of God," we will be more likely to feel hopeful. Not only does listening to God help but reflecting on scripture about His faithfulness will restore our hope. Here are 5 of my favorite verses that remind me of God’s faithfulness.
- “Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them, for the Lord your God goes with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you.” Deuteronomy 31:6 NIV
- “For You are my rock and my safe place. For the honor of Your name, lead me and show me the way. You will free me from the net that they have hidden for me. For You are my strength. I give my spirit into Your hands. You have made me free, O Lord, God of truth.” Psalm 31:3-5 NLV
- “Because of the Lord’s great love, we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.” Lamentations 3:22-23 NIV
- “Pray, too, that we will be rescued from wicked and evil people, for not everyone is a believer. But the Lord is faithful; he will strengthen you and guard you from the evil one.” 2 Thessalonians 3:2-3 NLT
- “Let us hold on to the hope we say we have and not be changed. We can trust God that He will do what He promised.” Hebrews 10:23 NLV
Conclusion
When we set our eyes on God and not on the news of this world we can find hope in hopeless situations. God is not bound to circumstances or time. He can change things in a moment if we believe. When life feels like everything is doom and gloom, take your fears to God. Stay present in reality, and remind yourself of all the good things God has done for you already. If you still feel unsteady spend time reflecting on scriptures and stories that remind you of God’s track record of faithfulness through the Bible. Even if we don’t see a breakthrough in our current situation we can be full of hope for our future. God will give you the endurance you need to walk through the trials on your way to triumph.
How do you find hope when you are feeling hopeless? Are there any other habits you have that boost hope? I’d love to hear them in the comments below.
Mucho Love,
