Strictly defined, hope means the belief that there are positive outcomes related to the things that happen in one's life. Simply defined, hope means belief. When one has hope, one is able to hang on and continue to persevere, despite overwhelming evidence to the contrary, things will turn out right. Hope can apply to anything, but it is interesting that many people do not understand what hope means. When we hear someone say "I hope I win the lottery", what they are saying is I wish or I want to win the lottery. If they have purchased a ticket for the lottery, hope exists. If they don't have a ticket, then no hope is possible since they have not made the first move toward reaching the stated goal. The person who hopes to win the lottery, yet does not buy a ticket is living under false hope.
             Hope is a very strong emotion, and can easily be enough to motivate people to act. Hope can also be sustaining in times of trouble or great worry. Hope is more than simply being optimistic, in that being optimism is an attitude. Faith can lead to hope, but faith is based more on positive elements of belief. Hope is more often associated with negative emotion, like despair. For those who do not believe, or associate hope only with negative emotions, hope is, as Lord Byron said "nothing but the pain on the face of existence; the least touch of truth rubs it off, and then we see what a hollow-cheeked harlot we have got a hold of." For this person, hope has failed, and is gone; there is no more motivation to believe.
             For those who still have hope, it means empowerment to believe in a future. Hope also imparts an element of spirituality without necessarily religiosity. Hope is movement toward the future and away from despair. When one hopes, it is with confidence that there is a reasonable expectation that the desired outcome will occur. Hope is a virtue as well. When one practices hope on a regul...