Good morning…
As I stroll into our summer reading of Henri Nouwen’s Here and Now, I meet these words on page 43. “Joy and hope are never separate. I have never met a hopeful person who was depressed or a joyful person who has lost hope.”
I think to myself, “Actually, I think I am a hopeful person who sometimes get depressed.” My emotions can wax and wane like the moon, and, at the same time, I remain hopeful about what lies ahead.
Nouwen continues: “But hope is something other than wishes, and joy is something other than happiness. Wishes and happiness generally refer to things or events. You wish that the weather will change or the war will end; you wish that you will get a new job, better pay, or a reward, and when you get what you wish, you are happy. But hope and joy are spiritual gifts rooted in an intimate relationship with the One who loves you with an everlasting love and who will always remain faithful to you. You hope in God and rejoice in God’s presence even when your many wishes are not realized and you are not very happy with the circumstances of your life.”
Nouwen concludes on page 44: “Some of the most hopeful and joyful moments of my life were moments of great emotional and physical pain. It was precisely during the experience of rejection or abandonment that I was ‘forced’ to cry out to God: ‘You are my only hope, you are the source of my joy.’ When I could no longer cling to my normal supports I discovered that true support and real safety lie far beyond the structures of our world.”
In my moments of deepest depression, I could no longer cling to my normal supports; my family, my friends, my favorite activities were not designed to sustain me. I was “forced” to cry out to my God, again and again, “You are my only hope, please show up soon, in some real way.”
After a lot of long days and very dark nights, joy finally crept back in to lift me up. I discovered personally that my true support and my real safety lie far beyond the structures (and the people) of our world. I am rooted in an intimate relationship with the One who loves me with an everlasting love, even when I am not very happy with the circumstances of my life.
“Arise [from spiritual depression to a new life], shine [be radiant with the glory and brilliance of the Lord]; for your light has come, and the glory and brilliance of the Lord has risen upon you,” (Isaiah 60:1, AMP).
In only God’s mysterious time and way, I truly believe that seasons of depression can give birth to a more lasting sense of joyful hope.
…Sue…
P.S. If you are interested in joining our summer reading group from wherever you live, we meet by Zoom each Wednesday at 10:00 am, beginning June 3rd. Please buy your own copy of Henri Nouwen’s Here and Now and contact Caroline Smith at fitzco1@comcast.net to receive the Zoom link.
P.S.S. God’s mysterious timing just walked up and surprised me. I sent our blog at 3:05 am. At 3:15 am, the Henri Nouwen Society shared the following wisdom.
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Letting Go Of My Wishes by Henri Nouwen from Finding My Way Home: Pathways to Life and the Spirit
I have found it very important in my own life to try to let go of my wishes and instead to live in hope. I am finding that when I choose to let go of my sometimes petty and superficial wishes and trust that my life is precious and meaningful in the eyes of God, something really new, something beyond my own expectations begins to happen for me.
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In the Garden of Gethsemane, Jesus demonstrated this divine dynamic. He painfully poured out to our Father every single ounce of his wishes, and then he let his wishes go. He went on a little farther and bowed with his face to the ground, praying, “My Father! If it is possible, let this cup of suffering be taken away from me. Yet I want your will to be done, not mine” (Matthew 26:39, NLT).
Exchanging our wishes for a hopeful trust in God, something really new begins to happen for us. Thanks be to God.
