Hope Warriors are a feisty bunch. They push against the darkness in their lives, choosing hope instead of hopelessness.
They use words like badass even if it raises eyebrows. Sometimes they get tattoos to remind them of what they are fighting for. They walk through life with courage, strength, and resolve. Some are in-your-face with their fight, and some radiate quiet strength.
Becoming a Hope Warrior is a process that looks different for each person, but I have found this to be a common thread. The more we fight for hope, the stronger we get, and as we fight, we begin to recognize the Hope Warriors around us.
Hope Warriors need each other, because there are days when you are wounded, and don’t have the strength to fight. And when those days happen, you need the Hope Warrior beside you to cover you with her shield while the arrows fly. On other days another Warrior will need the refuge of your shield.
And through the fighting, we begin to see those drowning in the darkness in a new way. We feel compassion because we know that we are only a few steps out of the darkness ourselves.
Hope Warriors are not afraid of the brokenness they see in others, because they see the brokenness in themselves. They know the brokenness does not define them. The way they fight for hope is what defines them.
So we stretch out our hand through the darkness to the drowning and say “You weren’t made for this. You were made for hope! Let’s fight for hope together!”
This page, Fighting For Those Who Can’t, is a resource to help Hope Warriors reach out. The list below contains the stories of people who are fighting for those who can’t. These stories show us ways we can reach out to the brokenhearted, the forgotten, the helpless.
It takes courage to fight for those who can’t. There is a risk of heartache, because experiencing the brokenness of others is never pretty or tidy.
My prayer is that as we reach out we will become so focused on helping others find hope that we will become fearless. That we will see that the risk is worth taking, because being brave enough to reach into the darkness can change someone’s entire story.
Fishes, Loaves, and Cookie Dough
As a little girl, Karina had no way of changing her path in life. She had no hope of anything except moving to the streets after she left the orphanage. But God used Hope Warriors, even a four year-old one, to reach into her hopeless circumstance and change her path for good.
Stretching Out a Hand of Relief
God asks us to stretch out a hand of relief to people who are helpless to change their situation. There is blessing in being part of the journey, there is meaning in bringing relief to someone’s life.
Heritage Ukraine: A Light in Dark Places
Ukraine had delicious pizza, huge grocery stores, beautiful landscapes, cold weather unlike anything I’d ever experienced. And beautiful, hospitable people who welcomed us into their homes.
There was also brokenness and pain. I spent time with the children in the orphanages and heard their stories. I saw fear beneath their tough exterior. These children were placed there by the decisions of others and are helpless to change their situation. Being helpless can take us to some pretty dark places. And here, in the middle of darkness, Heritage Ukraine is a ray of light. A sliver of hope that things don’t have to stay dark.
There is no language barrier in a smile, hand holding, hugs, or with the smallest ones, holding them in your arms.