Questioning the Power of Hope at 2 a.m.

‘Things will always work out, God will be there for us,’ my mother always said to me growing up. I never really understood what she meant by that. I grew up in a Muslim family where we believe Allah is always watching over you guiding you along in your daily life. When I was younger I would go to Sunday school and I distinctly remember being taught that there will always be one person who will be there for me whenever I’m in need. The idea that things will turn out for the better came from God and was engraved into my mind.  It is a strange concept to wrap my head around that there is a person with magical powers in heaven above making the world go around.

Religion is a concept of believing in someone or something, and people tend to order their whole worlds around the idea of God and how he gave you that great life. But didn’t you get your life by achieving everything you have gained? There is so much hope in this world centered around God or religion, that there is not enough hope within ourselves. There are times where people will refer to their religion and say they are thankful for God because he gave them a wonderful home or car, or whatever it may be. I see it as I have a wonderful home because my parents work long hours never coming home. Maybe people do this to give hope to something that they believe will always be constant in their lives or the longing feeling of wanting hope in life’s difficult times. I really do not know, I just find it strange how humans find hope and courage in ways that are unexplainable to the human mind.

Throughout time religions have been at each other’s throats battling to the death to prove that their belief is superior to others. They all hold different structures, holy books and systems within. However, what does bond these all different groups together is the idea of being guided through life by a “thing” somewhere in heaven.

Hope is something that is awakened deep within a person and to puts all that energy into an idea of a watcher from above is what people seem to find comfort nowadays. I’m not saying that I don’t believe in God or whatever there may be up above watching me. However, what I do not believe in is that “God will prosper his children.” Instead, that I believe I have a prosperous life because of myself. I have achieved goals in my life that have got me where I am today. The greatness and aspirations in life are gained by yourself, not by a magical human watching above you.