Well, Hope Realized, is officially one year old! It is hard to believe it has been more than a year since the book launch. When you write a book, releasing words and ideas into the world, it is hard to know how it will be received and age. They seem meaningful and worth consuming as you write them, but will they remain that way as they are consumed by others? A year later, I am grateful to say I am even more convinced about the life-changing power of real, all-in hope.

Over the last twelve months, I have had the chance to share about the content of Hope Realized as well as have many great conversations with people who have read it. These opportunities have helped me see all-in hope and our ability to be bringers of it through different eyes. It has reinforced the important role hope plays in our lives regardless of our socioeconomic status. Many people struggle with hopelessness, it just looks different depending on your context. However, on the inside, hopelessness can leave us believing survival is all there is. We all need hope to truly live.

The good news is, we all have the ability to experience it. You see, real, all-in hope is not an exhaustible resource. It is readably available and reproduces exponentially. There are innumerable ways to provide practical hope through a real opportunity. The gifts and resources needed to provide someone a chance to realize their God-given potential is in our hands. Similarly, providing spiritual hope by helping someone reframe their identity is not a skill limited to a few. If we understand that we are created by a God who loves us and created us on purpose and for a purpose, we have all we need to point someone else to this truth. This means everyone can have access to all-in hope.

The one potential limiting factor to the advancement of real, life-changing hope is our will. Do we believe change is possible or are we buying into the same life of hopelessness that has perpetuated poverty, in all its forms, for generations? Your will, your true intent, is based on what you really believe. Do you really believe there is hope for yourself and other, especially those who are seemingly trapped in hopelessness? Each of our answers to this question will play a big role in the potential of real, all-in hope becoming realized.

This is a big reason I titled my book Hope Realized. It is not the ability of hope to create change that limits it, it is our collective will to release it. For this reason, one year later, my resolve to get this message out has only increase. We have an incredible hope reserve just waiting to the released. The great news is it is in our hands. The question is will we open them and allow its potential to become a reality. I am very optimistic.

As I ended Hope Realized: Change is possible. Hope wins the day!

James Belt

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