Choose to Be a Person of Hope

During my career, both as a history professor for many years and then as an administrator, I’ve been consistently surprised at how often I dwell on negative comments made about my performance. I still remember one course I taught where I received very high marks from over 95 percent of the students in the class. However, two students were not happy with me or the course. I spent an inordinate amount of time reading about what they did not like and why, and trying to figure out whether I might change their minds should they take my course in the future. For some reason, my mind seemed drawn to those who were most critical.  

I recently read a piece by an author who was depressed after reading the online reviews of her books. Although the vast majority of the comments were affirming, the negative ones attacked her character, writing style, and argument. She was left feeling like she should never write again.

As I read this short piece, it brought back memories of my own teaching experience with assessment tools and surveys, and I wondered why, as humans, we seem to dwell on the negative. The reality is that in this social media-driven era, it is even more evident as people constantly assess the content they read and feel free to make critical comments. 

Psychologists say we have a bias toward negativity. Since the time of Genesis, humans have survived by focusing more on the threats that surround them (things that might attack or eat them) than on the aspects of life that affirm them. This explains why I am drawn to negative things! As one writer put it, our “ice age brains are more easily impacted by the negative than the positive, even if the latter far outnumbers the former.” 

On New Year’s Day, I came across an encouraging piece in The New York Times by Lauren Jackson called “Hope in a Time of Cynicism.” Jackson noted that the happiest people in life are the ones who overcome their negativity bias and live in hope. Hope in this context is not a feeling but a belief that the future will be better and I can participate in making it so. 

A wise colleague of mine, Mary Peterson, our provost and a psychologist, suggested to me that her profession often discovers what the Bible has already presented as true. Paul, in his letter to the church at Philippi, wrote this:

“And now, dear brothers and sisters, one final thing. Fix your thoughts on what is true, and honorable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise.” - Philippians 4:8

In a time of significant persecution, Paul focused the attention of the followers of Jesus on aspects of daily life that were pure, lovely and admirable. Knowing that Christ has already secured the future – one where God’s kingdom reigns – it was vital for the people of God to be people of hope.  

God has called us to participate in the building of his kingdom in this world; we are asked to be agents of renewal and change. Each day, if we listen carefully, the Spirit of God that lives within us is whispering to us that God is on the move, and although it seems dark, the light is shining brightly if we only choose to see it.  

In this age of cynicism, it is even easier to lean toward darkness. I was reminded of that when I got up at 6 a.m. to run on Thursday – it was 33 degrees, dark and lightly raining. The roads were slick, and the longer I ran, the colder I seemed to get. It was hard to smile. The Lord reminded me in the midst of that run that, in just a short time, everything around me would be bright, green and beautiful.  

In The Lord of the Rings, as Sam and Frodo approach Mount Doom to take the ring back to where it was created and all hope seemed lost, darkness surrounded them. Suddenly, “There, peeping among the cloud-wrack above a dark tor high up in the mountains, Sam saw a white star twinkle for a while. The beauty of it smote his heart, as he looked up out of the forsaken land, and hope returned to him. For like a shaft, clear and cold, the thought pierced him that in the end the Shadow was only a small and passing thing: there was light and high beauty forever beyond its reach.”

It may not seem so, but be assured that the light outshines the darkness. Commit this year in 2026 to be a person of hope. Look for beauty, write down good things you see in others, tell your friends why you love them and may the love of God always dwell richly in your heart and mine.