Hoping for Happiness?

Hope is different than happiness. Obvious?
Not necessarily. We tend to confuse the expected effects of hope with happiness. That somehow to believe that, at the end of the story, all will be well, should result in an upbeat mood for me here in the middle of the story.
Instead of either hope or happiness we get a strange (and frequently irresponsible) reinterpretation of what is transpiring here in the middle of the story. Our part of the story. We either want pain and evil vanquished, and take up arms to that end. The casualties of our righteous hostility lie scattered across the battlefield of our moral crusades. Or we pretend that pain and evil have already been vanquished and any remnant is but a gift from God to test our faith and enhance our characters. What response is there but docile and unquestioning gratitude?
But if pain and evil are harsh realities here in our part of the story (whether or not their ultimate doom is guaranteed), then included in my discipleship responsibilities is a thoughtful, intentional and lifelong response.
I can neither ignore nor be consumed by all that is wrong.
Hope makes it possible for me, in the midst of and in spite of my harsh reality, to function within it and to act creatively to counter it. If my energy is not wasted on denying or demonizing, it can be directed toward healing and restoring. Toward creating a tomorrow more reflective of the reign of the good and just God. The hope that comes from knowing the end of the story sustains and nourishes my spirit in the face of the seemingly insurmountable odds that we face in the middle of the story. Whether or not I find moments of happiness along the way, I give all of myself to living a full and meaningful life because I have hope.