Hope Helps Us in Our Daily Life

For the Jubilee Year of Hope, Deanna Bartalini takes a look at the virtue of hope and how it can help us in our difficulties and in daily life. 

Have you ever heard the that phrase, “Hold On, Pain Ends” as an acronym for hope? I have — and I’m not fond of it. I prefer to think of hope the way our Church teaches us about the theological virtues of faith, hope, and charity. Those virtues give us the help we need every day to live out our vocations, first as children of God, then as wife, mother, daughter, nun, or single woman, and in the work we do professionally in the world.

Virtues are not only for our faith life; they are for all parts of our life. 

The Theological Virtues 

The theological virtues are the foundation of Christian moral activity; they animate it and give it its special character. They inform and give life to all the moral virtues. They are infused by God into the souls of the faithful to make them capable of acting as his children and of meriting eternal life. They are the pledge of the presence and action of the Holy Spirit in the faculties of the human being. There are three theological virtues: faith, hope, and charity (love). (Catechism of the Catholic Church #1813)

These virtues are gifts from God! These virtues are given to us so that we live and God’s children and someday enter heaven. They tell us that the Holy Spirit is in us and active in our mind. The virtues help us live as faithful followers of Christ. 

The Virtue of Hope 

Hope is the theological virtue by which we desire the kingdom of heaven and eternal life as our happiness, placing our trust in Christ’s promises and relying not on our own strength, but on the help of the grace of the Holy Spirit. “Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for he who promised is faithful.” (CCC #1817) 

This reminds us that we are not to rely on ourselves, but on Christ. When there are challenging times in life, I tend to want to make a plan to fix it all. Sometimes there is no plan or fixing of a situation. That’s when turning to hope can be the way to let go of the problem. We may equate letting go of something with giving up. Not at all. Often in the letting go and entrusting it to God we come to have peace. Hope tells us we can trust Him. With hope, we gain the wisdom of the Holy Spirit to move forward.  

3 Things to Remember About Hope 

• We hope for what we don’t have and can’t see. Our faith is bigger than what is in front of us. The hope we are given is beyond human understanding. Hope can propel us forward, trusting the God will make a way through whatever is happening in our lives. 

• Sometimes it is difficult to hope. Do you even feel like a punching bag? Every time you turn around there is one more problem: crying moms, wet diapers, overflowing toilets, burnt dinners, deadlines, bills, sickness. That’s when it is time to pause, turn to God in prayer and ask Him to send help.  

• We can have hope by relying on God’s undeniable power. Our power comes from God. It comes from turning over our troubles to Him, having hope, and believing He works in your life.  

When you feel hopeless or a situation seems hopeless, turn it over to God. Pray this Act of Hope.  

Act of Hope 

My God, I hope with a firm confidence that you will give me, by the merits of Jesus Christ, your grace in this world, and, if I observe your commandments, your glory in the next, because you have promised it to me, and because you are supremely faithful in your promises. (Charles Peguy) 

Further Resources About Hope

Listen to "What is Hope" from the Not Lukewarm Podcast, or on Spotify.

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Copyright 2025 Deanna Bartalini
Images: Canva