by
Ryan Clement
IN THESE EVIDENTLY TROUBLED TIMES, it feels fittingly ironic that a recent visit to Liverpool took me between places of faith – Liverpool Cathedral and Liverpool Metropolitan Cathedral – through a street named Hope. Of course, the two are closely connected, but not identical. To me, hope is the belief that tomorrow can be better than today; faith is the conviction that keeps us moving when tomorrow remains unseen. That is my view, though I am sure it can be refined.
HOPE GIVES US SOMETHING TO ANTICIPATE. It helps us imagine possibilities beyond our present circumstances. When life is difficult, hope reminds us that our struggles need not be the end of the story: “I hope that one day…” or “I live in hope that…” or the absolute, ‘I can only live in hope!’
FAITH, HOWEVER, GOES FURTHER. It gives us the courage to keep believing when there is little visible evidence that life will improve. Faith does not require every answer or a clear path aroundevery obstacle; it asks us to trust that the journey still has meaning. Today’s Daily Prompt asks, “What’s something you’ve done that you never thought you could?” My first answer was becoming a barrister, but that would not be entirely true. I entered Bar school in 1995, hoping to pass and trusting my faith to make that hope a reality. Thankfully, I did—a retake was both unthinkable and unaffordable!
WITHOUT HOPE, LIFE CAN LOSE ITS SENSE OF POSSIBILITY. Without faith, hope may falter amid life’s inevitable disappointments and uncertainties. Together, however, they create something remarkable: resilience.
WHATEVER OUR FAITH IS ROOTED IN, it can sustain our hope for better days. Hope tells us that something good is possible, however, faith persuades us that it is worth pursuing! That was the mindset I carried into Bar school. I had to!
SOMETIMES, when the road ahead looks difficult, hope and faith together help us take one more step. As the saying goes, “Take the first step in faith. You don’t have to see the whole staircase, just take the first step!”
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