One day the ladies in our church group decided to get together for a luncheon, and to make it special I made invitations and designed a theme for the gathering just for fun. I have always worked with children, and am doing so now, and after raising four children of my own we have always enjoyed a variety of children’s picture books. One of my favorites was the folk story called, “Stone Soup.” So, that was the theme we used for this special afternoon.

Even though there are many versions of the story, this is the one we used:

“The UK is vulnerable to epidemics such as Ebola because of a gaping hole in the country’s ability to manufacture vaccines, a group of MPs has warned… ‘Existing [pharmaceutical] facilities are degraded… leaving the UK in a vulnerable position’” (BBC, January 25, 2016). How likely are Ebola and other new infectious diseases to make their way to the UK and the U.S.?

“Cooperation between Russia, Iran and China might signal a formation of a new world paradigm, able to re-define the global situation in the world both politically and strategically; the recent developments in the relations between the three might be more significant than many realize” (Sputnik News, January 26, 2016; Reuters, January 23, 2016).

Shinzo Abe, the Japanese prime minister expressed his desire to see 2016 as the year “Japan will shine on the global stage and demonstrate its leadership” (Japan Times, January 1, 2016).

It seems there is precious little in the news today to give cause for optimism about the future. Indicators everywhere suggest that life could become a lot rougher. Many people look around and grow discouraged by what they see. For some, their personal lives have been or are becoming destitute of hope. But is there any real reason for hope?