Sermon Central
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6 Ways To Give People Hope Series
Contributed by Dag Heward-Mills on Jan 5, 2011 (message contributor)
Summary: Do you wonder why nobody stays in your company or church for very long? Perhaps there is not much hope for the future. Perhaps they cannot see good things in store for them in the future. There is enough negative news around to keep people down, so deci
Six Ways to Give People Hope
1. Make promises and keep them.
Every time you break a promise, you erode people’s trust in you. It is very difficult to make people trust you. When people do not trust you, they will not follow you. The whole of Jesus’ ministry was centered around a promise for the future.
…I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also.
John 14:2,3
Jesus’ disciples were made to believe that there were good things in store for them in the future. They knew that Jesus would keep his promise so they had hope.
2. Preach the Word of God.
The Word of God is full of hope. Anyone who preaches the Word of God will not minister discouragement, disappointment and disillusionment.
3. Speak more about rewards than punishment.
The disciples had hope. They had hope in the glory and the rewards of Heaven. This was a great source of motivation to them. You must understand that Jesus’ disciples were so highly motivated that they had left their secular jobs for the ministry. They eventually died for their beliefs.
4. Show positive examples that inspire hope.
In your business or church, you must accept the fact that people need to be motivated. The key to having motivated people is “hope for the future”. That is why Jesus often spoke of Heaven and the rewards that await his faithful servants. If you want to inspire pilots for instance, show them how many pilots have successfully flown for years and eventually retired. That is the sort of example that will give hope. If you want to inspire pastors, show them examples of ministers who have made it in ministry.
5. Avoid speaking about examples that bring about discouragement and depression.
If people see how badly others have fared, they will be discouraged. They will say to themselves, “This is how I will end up one day.” If you are an airline pilot, there is no point in discussing all the terrifying air crashes in aviation history. Talk about all of the wonderful places you have been fortunate to travel to and how much you love your job. More people will be inspired to fly on planes.
6. Build permanent structures.
People have more hope in permanent things. It is natural to gravitate towards something that is more permanent. Every pastor who puts up a building, inspires hope in his congregation.
