We want to win hearts. We want to build lasting emotional connections with our potential believers. It’s natural to quickly gravitate to something that will create an immediate visceral reaction. Something sensational. This has utility as we are trying to break through the massive amount of clutter out there. But we need to be careful that we don’t stop there. Shock can create a quick jolt, but if we want to sustain, we're going to need something else. This is where hope can be very powerful. I wrote about this recently:

I know we will need the sensationalism to shock people out of their malaise. To take notice. But if we really want them to commit to our cause…we need to show them that they are directly connected to restoring and furthering a sustainable sense of hope.

Hope has the advantage of sustainability

Shock simply cannot sustain. That’s where hope’s value really becomes evident. Connecting with our believers’ hopes creates a reason for them to stay engaged.

Hope taps into aspirations. Those are positive desires that every one of us holds dear. Imagine helping someone feel like they are moving closer to making that aspiration a reality. That’s valuable stuff. When we do help them reach that point, we'll have earned a place in their hearts. But it doesn’t end there. Because even once any of us achieves an aspiration, there is another one behind it that takes its place. It’s an endless well.

Alexander Pope said, "Hope springs eternal.” And Stephen King wrote in the Shawshank Redemption, “Remember, hope is a good thing, maybe the best of things, and no good thing ever dies."

Connecting with and supporting our believers’ hopes may be one of the most powerful and noble things we can do.