Hope! Perhaps you have read story of Captain Eddie Rickenbacker and his crew when their plane fell into Pacific. There were seven men in life rafts for twenty one days with nothing but water and sun for as far as eye could see.

As Luck Would Have It!

Now, ask yourself this question. You know better than anyone else. How would you have reacted to being cooped up with seven of your best friends for twenty one days in a life raft in middle of Pacific?

Would you have been trying to ring someone's neck? Or, would you have been pillar of hope for your friends?

What is hope anyway? Hope is that magical emotion which is unseen but, causes us to see evidence of what we desire before we get it.

It's not really faith. Faith is like furnace in your house. Hope is like thermostat on wall. Hope can be regulated up and down. The more you turn it up, more fire it creates in your belly. The more fire you create in you, more fear you expel.

The Dynamic Duo!

Hope is expectation that you will get your desire, and faith is belief that it is possible. These two are a force to be reckoned with. Together, they are more powerful than superman, lone ranger, and trigger. You can change course of your destiny with Hope and Faith.

You see, a person reacts consciously to anything, which to him or her is believable, desirable and attainable. He/She also reacts unconsciously to inner urges that cause you to get into action when suggestions are made to subconscious.

You may react favorably, unfavorably, or neutral to some stimulus; It all depends on what suggestions are. And, these suggestions have a direct impact on hope of individual.

The Fortunes Of War!

Have you ever had to hope, against all hope, that your desire was obtainable? Have you ever, just out of sheer will and determination, forced yourself to look on bright side of life with all circumstances telling you you're a bald faced liar? Yeah? What did you do? Blow your stack? Or, come up smelling like a rose?

Your hope is root cause of whatever you got. Did you get your desire? You kept your hope. Did you not get what you desired? You lost your hope.

Now don't you get mad at me. I'm just messenger. Yes, I admit, sometime we get things, at times, when we lose hope. It's almost as if Universe says; "here bozo, splat, here's a little bone for you".

Which brings up an interesting point. In Strengths e-course I offer, I ask learners to name major strength of different well-known people. Last week I asked about Mother Theresa. Pamela Sheppard replied: “The standard is compassion, but, having had chance to actually see her in action, I have to add mental toughness, clarity of intention and economy of action. She was Holy Hell on Wheels, and thank God for that! --- and anyone else pales beside her.”

I was intrigued and emailed Pamela back. Had she seen Mother Theresa? What was it like?

Pamela wrote back: “Yes. I met Mother Theresa in Tijuana, where she set up her seminary for Order she had tried to start. This tiny woman didn’t waste a nanosecond on anyone like me … Her energy was given to poorest participants, who had nothing but their faith. This alone made for one of most inspiring afternoons I have ever or will ever experience.