in Choose Hope Today, Living Hope
Living Hope is an active community of people who have endured life-changing trials but have come out on the other side – not unscathed, but evolved; evolved into Hope Practitioners by choosing to see the world through the lens of Hope.
What are Hope Practitioners, you ask? Put simply, Hope Practitioners are people who actively choose Hope. But more specifically, Hope Practitioners are those in our community who have made a choice to walk in Hope every day and to find faith in things unseen by implementing 8 intentional Practices – Practices of Surrender, Stillness, Grief, Honesty, Curiosity, Forgiveness, Resilience, and Joy.
Our 8 Practices in summary:
Surrender
Surrender is the opportunity to submit to what you cannot control and to accept what is meant to be. You will begin the Practice of Surrender when you identify what you are trying to force into existence and relieve yourself of the burden of this impossible task.
Stillness
Stillness is the mental and emotional space that allows you to thoughtfully consider the circumstances that have impacted your current struggle. You will begin the Practice of Stillness when you choose to disconnect from all the ways in which you seek to distract yourself from your pain, loneliness, and fear.
Grief
Grief is the means to the end of profound pain. You will begin the Practice of Grief when you allow the emptiness itself to fill the depth of your sadness and acknowledge what you have lost – name it, honor what it meant to you, and move forward, accepting how its presence — and its loss — in your life will shape what is to come.
Honesty
Honesty is the rejection of fantasy or delusion and the acceptance of what you know to be true, regardless of how ugly it might feel. You will begin the Practice of Honesty when the space within the center of your being begins to stir, and you choose to listen and accept what it tells you as Truth.
Curiosity
Curiosity is a loving means of self-examination. You will begin the Practice of Curiosity when you are willing to sit and wonder: How did I find myself here?
Forgiveness
Forgiveness is the act of owning up to your part in the story. You will begin the Practice of Forgiveness when you are willing to peel back the layers of blame you keep placing on others and on yourself and have empathy and acceptance for the root cause of the pain that has been inflicted and received.
Resilience
Resilience is the willingness to accept all that you have been through and feel grateful that you have survived and, ultimately, will thrive as the result of your past trauma. You will begin the Practice of Resilience when you find peace and renewal in your process and embrace the upward spiral that began from that fateful moment of surrender.
Joy
Joy comes from finding contentment and authenticity in yourself and then being able to form a relationship with the person you are meant to be. You will begin the Practice of Joy by committing to know and appreciate yourself exactly as you are; to be truthful in your testimony and to come to know and understand the desires of your heart.
In the days and weeks to come, we will be exploring the 8 Practices in greater depth and sharing the inspirational stories of our brave Hope Practitioners. And if you have your own story of Hope to tell, very soon we will be asking you to share it, so you can inspire others who may need a word of encouragement.
Until then, like and follow us on social media or signup here to be updated when our Living Hope stories launch.