Study after study shows that when we think we are going to do well at something, we actually do.
In medicine they call it the Placebo Effect. When we believe a medication or a treatment will help heal us, our bodies and minds respond to that and the treatment has positive effects.
A recent Parkinson’s Disease study showed that patients felt better and that their brains might actually change if they think they are taking a more expensive, more effective medication. In essence their symptoms were lessened when they thought the drug they were taking was an extremely costly one versus one that was far cheaper. In both cases it was a simply a saline injection.
Often when we believe that we can be healthy, it’s the first step to being healthy. When we want to see the goodness in others, when we expect it, we see it. When we want to notice beauty in a difficult situation, we often see beauty.
The actual way we see problems and adversity has a profound effect on the outcome.
The placebo effect, in kingdom terms, is simply hope.
Hope is believing the best is still on its way and that goodness will triumph in the end. Hope is knowing that life is full of meaning and God’s purposes are really above ours. It is resting in knowing God is in control so that we don’t have to be.
So there really is a sort of power in good expectation. There is a power in hope.
But in the same way, when we want to see someone’s faults or when we expect someone to fail, suddenly that’s all we can see. And who knows? Maybe we are a small part of their actual failure. When we expect things to be terrible, often it does turn out how we have envisioned it to end.
Losing hope might be the saddest human experience. It’s worse than losing faith, than losing joy or love. Losing hope means that none of those other things (faith, joy, or love) have a place to put roots down.
In 2 Corinthians 4:16-18 (NLT), Paul talks about losing hope.
“That is why we never give up. Though our bodies are dying, our spirits are being renewed every day. For our present troubles are small and won’t last very long. Yet they produce for us a glory that vastly outweighs them and will last forever! So we don’t look at the troubles we can see now; rather, we fix our gaze on things that cannot be seen. For the things we see now will soon be gone, but the things we cannot see will last forever.”
I’ve been walking a rough road lately, but I’ve learned something in the past six weeks that I hadn’t learned yet in the past 40 years:
A lot of life is what we expect, and above all, when hope is present, everything changes.
Any one of us who has sat with a friend or a grandparent who is dying knows this: those who face death with hope on their lips walk a very different road than those who do not. Why does God heal some and not others? I don’t know. Does hope and expectation really affect the outcome when someone really is dying? I’m not sure. But I do know this, hope affects our hearts.
If we expect someone to get better and they do not or if we expect a difficult situation to resolve but it never does, does that speak to the efficacy of hope or the truth of God’s goodness? There have been times recently when I have wrestled with this. But at the end of it all, I think not.
God is always good and hope is always needed.
I don’t believe hope is as hollow as a placebo. A placebo works with the positive thoughts of the patient and with the patient’s expectations of the outcome. In the Parkinson’s study, the placebo was a saline injection with no real merit of it’s own. And hope is not this innately ineffective.
But like a placebo, hope is important. “So we don’t look at the troubles we can see now; rather, we fix our gaze on things that cannot be seen.” This is hope! This is knowing the future God has chosen for us is good and right and that He has our best interests in His mind. All. The. Time.
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Bev @ Walking Well With God says
Sarah,
This post is so timely for me. Two days ago I met with one of our area’s top foot surgeons in an attempt to find some relief for two years of severe pain in my foot. Since what I’m dealing with is nerve pain and it can be very tricky, the doctor was honest with me and said that further surgery had a slim chance of alleviating the pain and also a fair chance at making it worse. These were words I didn’t want to here…we are so used to there being a “fix” for everything. Right now, my “fix” is hope. I know that God is still in the miracle business and so I fix my eyes and my hope upon Him. I know that He is certainly able, but even if He should choose not to heal my pain, I will still praise Him because He is good and ultimately, in eternity, there will be an eternal “fix” for my pain. Thank you so much for these words of encouragement…I needed them this morning!
Blessings,
Bev xx
Veronica says
Praying for you, Bev. xox
Bev @ Walking Well With God says
Thanks Veronica xo
Penny says
Bev,
Prayers that all will be well for you…..
Best wishes,
Penny
Bev @ Walking Well With God says
Thanks Penny – you are such an encourager 🙂
Joanne Peterson says
Bev,
My prayers go out to you to be at peace, and for Jesus to carry you and lift up your head.
((Hugs)),
Joanne
Bev @ Walking Well With God says
Love you Joanne xox
Nancy Ruegg says
More prayers coming your way (via the Throne) from my little corner, Bev!
Bev @ Walking Well With God says
Thanks Nancy xox
Beth Williams says
Bev,
Prayers for healing of your nerve problems in your foot! May God provide some relief and possible complete healing! Keep praising God in the midst of storms my friend!
Blessings 🙂
Veronica says
Appreciated your words this morning Sarah. “God is always good and hope is always needed.” Amen.
Liz P says
I really needed this message this week. I recently started a new job, and it has been a hard week. Thank you!
Beth Williams says
Liz,
Prayers for the new job to get better! May the coming weeks be a bit less hard on you and give you some peace and contentment!
Blessings 🙂
kwpastorwife says
Sarah,
Thank you for this! What a wonderful reminder to hang on to hope!
Romans 8:25
Caroline Blackman says
These are such wise words. Thank you so much for sharing your faith through your writing!
Jennifer says
Sarah, thank you for this post. I am so sorry that your road has been difficult. I pray that you have continued strength from God and that your road becomes less rough. May God carry you through these times 🙂
Blessings,
Jennifer
Penny says
Thank-you Sara,
beautifully said.
I would n’t feel that it was life, without hope.
Susan G. says
Yes! Thank you for this! Hope is so important to our very being. I’m printing this off to give to one of the ladies in our women’s small group bible study. She was just diagnosed with MS and I will meet with her tonight.
Thank you for blessing others even when you have struggled lately yourself. God does not waste a thing!
Praying you will be blessed mightily!
Joanne Peterson says
I facilitate a class for women who have had trauma, and the thing that all of them are looking for is hope, the alternative is despair. No one can truly live in despair for long, it slowly kills the body, soul, and spirit. These courageous women come out with hope for their lives in Jesus. It is so beautiful to watch these women bloom into who they desire to be and live with abundance instead of despair.
Thank you Sarah for this lovely truth in this post.
Joanne
Hanna says
Thank you for this. I needed someone to put it into words for me 🙂 I think it is also something we should instill in our children. Not to look at the trouble they (we) are going through, but at what is up ahead.
Nancy Ruegg says
Wonderful post, Sarah. I was not familiar with that research on the placebo effect. Scientific proof for the benefit of hope! I also found great encouragement in your statements: “Hope is believing the best is still on its way and that goodness will triumph in the end,” and “Knowing the future God has chosen for us is good and right and that He has our best interests in His mind all the time.” You’ve filled my hope-tank today! Thank you!
Beth Williams says
Sarah,
Like you I’ve been going through a rough patch for over a year. I’ve been dealing with my aging dad’s move to assisted living and his medical issues. That has adversely affected my work performance. Several events happened at my clinic. My job changed with all that. Last year I was off work a ton with my dad and found it hard to concentrate on my work properly. Some things happened this year and I resigned my position. During this time my hubby almost lost his job. He was given a position back at hospital on crappy shift. Now he’s at an urgent care with same company and worried he will lose this position.
Through all this I have had the hope and knowledge that God will see us through these trials! There were many days when I felt depressed, & not wanting to keep on, but I kept my focus on God and prayed a lot. I know for certain that He will see us through these trials!!
Blessings 🙂