Snowflake Challenge 2024 #2

[galadhir]

In your own space, set yourself some goals for the coming year. They can be fannish or not, public or private. Leave a comment in this post saying you did it. Include a link to your post if you feel comfortable doing so.

I have my goals here Final Roundup of 2023 and New Year Goals for 2024 but I think I want to add one more, which is

• make hope part of your daily practice.

I already have a Christian religious practice in which I try to leave worry to the Lord. But not worrying is not quite the same thing as having hope. It feels necessary now that I add in a daily habit of hoping that - since God is in charge and God is good - the world will improve, and there is a future for the planet, and life is worth living and will continue to be so.

These things don't come to me easily, but I've never deliberately worked at it before, and it may be time.

Comments

Hmm ...

[ysabetwordsmith]

Yeah, hope is definitely something that requires active effort in times like these. It's like trying to grow tomatoes in the desert -- doable, but takes a lot of work.

I'm thinking hope is a pretty big thing in Christian traditions, so there ought to be plenty of materials for it. So let's see ...

https://www.biblekeeper.com/prayers-for-hope/

https://christian.net/resources/prayers-for-hope/

https://www.countryliving.com/life/g31917944/bible-verses-about-hope/

And hey, you're a signwriter, you could pick a favorite and paint it!

Try checking your local inspirational bookstore? I've got prayerbooks from different traditions on major topics like healing, so there are probably some on hope. Actually, I've got a poem in an anthology about hope, took me a while to track down, but here:
https://www.amazon.com/Impossible-Will-Take-Little-While/dp/0465041663
Not exclusively Christian but a good book on the topic.

Re: Hmm ...

[galadhir]

Ooh, I love the idea of painting one of these for a wall hanging or something. The Jeremiah one is my favourite - it gets me every time. And it has the bonus that it's one of the shortest, so I would pick that.

That does look like a useful book to read these days! Congrats on being in there with people like Nelson Mandela and Maya Angelou. That's quite some company :)

Re: Hmm ...

[ysabetwordsmith]

>> Ooh, I love the idea of painting one of these for a wall hanging or something. <<

Yay! I'm so happy I could help.

Does your church have a place where they hang spiritual art, like a community room or a contemplation room? You could always ask if they'd like you to do something for it. People need hope, and a reminder can help.

>> The Jeremiah one is my favourite - it gets me every time. And it has the bonus that it's one of the shortest, so I would pick that.<<

Good choice.

>> That does look like a useful book to read these days! Congrats on being in there with people like Nelson Mandela and Maya Angelou. That's quite some company :)

When I got my complimentary copy, we all sat around and squealed over who-all I was rubbing covers with. Yes, those were two of the Names that I was super excited about.