Discussion #1 - Hope

With it being the season of Advent, we spent this morning discussing hope.

These were some of the questions we discussed. Feel free to leave your own comments below!

What is hope?

Several definitions or descriptions:

- Hope is the expectation of something (generally good)

- Hope is the desire for something good in the future

- Hope is the good thing in the future that we are desiring

- Hope is faith in the future tense (this was our favorite description)

- Hope is like a reservoir of emotional strength

There was an article that talked about the difference between biblical hope and hope. Biblical hope is a confident expectation and desire for something good in the future. You expect good things from God rather than just crossing your fingers and wishing for the best. Do you agree or disagree? Why or why not?

Is hope an important mindset to have?

There were a few studies that discovered that hope allowed people to approach problems with a mindset and strategy-set available for success (and increasing the chances for it).

Hope has been described as a dynamic cognitive motivational system, and therefore affects goal-making.

- Those with hope make learning goals. These goals are conducive for growth and improvement. People will actively engage in learning, plan strategies to meet those goals, and monitor their progress for staying on track.

- Those without hope make mastery goals. These goals are easy tasks that they quit if they fail. They also act helpless, and they believe they have no control over their environment (the state they are in).

Some argue that hope has some downsides. Do you agree? Do you disagree?

We mentioned being disappointed if the event or circumstance didn't happen after you hoped for so long.

If you agree, do those downsides outweigh the good parts? Also, how do you deal with those downsides?

Scripture(s):

There are 180 mentions of hope in the Bible, but these were our chosen two for the day.

Romans 15:13 - May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.

Isaiah 40:31 - but those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint

Next week we will be discussing peace. Find us on the Discord, and we hope to hear you there!