Hope is the Point
Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful. And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds, not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another…
Hebrews 10:23-25
I work in the field of Trauma Informed Care, and one of the key principles is Peer Support & Mutual Self-Help, defined as offering and receiving help, based on shared understanding, respect, and mutual empowerment, between people in similar situations. Through peer support and mutual self-help, we can establish a sense of safety, build trust, enhance collaboration, and utilize our lived experiences to foster hope, support healing, and help us move from surviving to thriving. Peers offer us practical advice and support from someone who truly understands the path we are on and the challenges involved. By valuing shared experiences and collective power, peer support helps to dismantle hierarchical structures within organizational cultures.
Our church community is a shining example of this principle in real life. In a turbulent world, we are all people in a similar situation: seeking to be peace and wage peace and love one another, every single other. Some days, it seems impossible…until I find words of encouragement in a sermon or a weekly devotional or through music…or take the time to notice all the ways Peace members are living out their faith through ministry and mission and social justice activism…or dive into service to care for someone in need…or reach out for prayer support…or simply share a conversation with one of my fellow community members. In those moments, I am reminded that I am not alone. I see that people just like me are surviving and even thriving as they live out their faith each day in skillful, beautiful, and impactful ways. If they can, I can, too. It is through the community at Peace, offering us such rich, varied, and ongoing support alongside the lived experiences and real-world examples of our faithful peers, that hope is renewed again and again.
Roxanne works as a Senior Behavioral Health Consultant at the Center for Trauma Informed Innovation at University Health. She is so grateful to be a part of this community that both inspires and restores hope.