The surprising role of hope in our lives

Just lately I (Tina Southgate), was struggling. Every day I would just feel hopeless.

I didn’t realise it was hopelessness I was feeling at first.

Everything just seemed stuck. I didn’t feel it would change for the better. I felt that all the faith I have had over the years to see certain thing shift was admiral but most probably unrealistic.

I told myself that I was thinking ‘realistically’, but worse than this, I just had zero motivation to think about the future, as there seemed no point.

Yikes! There are few truly ironic things in this world, a depressed life coach must figure as one!

The truth is all of us at times have similar feelings. They may be quite strong feelings or slight.

When we lose hope, we lose vision. When we lose vision, we lose our way.

I can testify to this. With an empty hope tank, every day is a struggle. Every decision is difficult and even our decision making is impaired, as we are deciding from a place that does not see truth.

This is where being a life coach, is quite handy, as you know the process through which to take yourself to lift yourself into a place of hope again.

This process needs to be both a head and a heart journey.

We can know things in our heads, but they don’t necessarily help us. We may know what we are supposed to think, but that doesn’t necessarily help us think that way, or feel it or truly believe it.

Most of us will know at least 3 if not 10 scriptures which will point to many reasons for us to feel differently, to feel hope. Knowing these scriptures doesn’t necessarily mean we feel the hope that they carry, all the time.

The answer, the way back to feeling and living from a place of hope, experiencing joy, peace, and love, is a personal journey different for each of us. What works for you may not work for me.

Coaching is a great tool, because it refuses to give a one size fits all answer and process. It is tailored to every individual to help them find their best journey, to find their best self, to find God in the way they personally and individually need.

Where are you at?

I devised two questions, so you can test how full your ‘hope tank’ is. And then some steps which will help you start your own process to fill your hope tank up!

2 POWERFUL QUESTIONS TO TEST HOW FULL YOUR HOPE TANK IS: 

ASK YOURSELF:

1. On a scale of 1 to 5 (5 being high and representing really easy) how easy is it for me to have vision for the future?
2. Do I usually expect positive, negative, or stagnant (unchanged) outcomes? (E.g. to projects, trying something new, tests or exams, meeting new friends, starting a new relationship, or continuing an existing one.)

If you score low, and you don’t expect positive and exciting outcomes most of the time, you most probably could do with a fuller hope tank.

GETTING A FULLER HOPE TANK

Here’s an easy 3 step coaching process to help you gain more hope:

STEP 1 – Discover

The first step is to discover what areas you lack hope in the most. Is it, money, provision, work, recognition, relationships, friendships, opportunities, health?

Once you have identified your category(s), ask yourself

What are my negative or ‘limiting’ beliefs about this area(s)?

STEP 2 – Reverse

Once you have identified your problem area, (I did this and it is a very enlightening process!), you can start to work on changing.

The key word there is ‘work’. Think of the area you have identified as a weakness that you need to strengthen. Remember: ‘As a man thinketh so is he’ (Proverbs 23:7.) Your thoughts will define your future, either positively or negatively. So positive hopeful thoughts are useful!

Here’s some tips on how to do the work. What works for you may be different to what’s on this list. Or maybe this list would work great. You know yourself best!

-List an empowering and positive belief for each negative one and choose to believe this. Repent of the unbelief

-Find scripture verses that speak directly into the area you need hope. Meditate on these, one verse a day, or one a week.

-Find books that you can read written by people that are strong in the area you are finding hard. Their strength will rub off on you.

-Ask God, what does He want to show you about this? Open your heart for Him to start working on you!

-Hero Exercise – Imagine someone dead or alive that you admire. What would they say to this thinking?

STEP 3 – Carry on

Simply, monitor yourself. I have an accountability partner, my husband. I have given him permission to highlight when I say things that are not positive and full of hope. It’s helpful! Sometimes these areas are blind spots. You can make it a point to journal your thoughts, asking yourself where am I at now with the subject of (insert your area here)? How has my thinking progressed? What do I think negatively and positively now today? Great I’ve changed. But I still see I need to work on …….this aspect.

Hope is essential. Without hope how can we bring hope to others? Without hope how can we say we are children of a good and merciful God who blesses us and loves us?

What could you do with having more hope in, in your life today?