By its nature, pessimism is lack of love. According to 1 Cor. 13, love is always ready to believe the best. That’s not to say that love is blind, it’s most certainly truthful and honest, but it does not project or emphasize outcomes, or assess situations, with the worst of the worst results in mind.
When the Israelites were sent into the Promised Land to spy it out, 10 pessimists and 2 optimists made up the scouting party. Caleb and Joshua optimized their love for God by seeing things through His eyes, the eyes of faith, and they came back with a good report from the Promised Land. The 10 pessimists came back with a fearful report and it caused the entire Israelite community to enter into rebellion (Number 13).
This is not to say that optimism must always have a wonderful report – but it has a God report! God’s way and will and word are prominent in the life of the optimist – he seeks God for each avenue in life and sees it as the best outcome because it’s prescribed by God. In the worst of circumstances, such as Paul and Silas’ imprisonment, the optimist can sing praise to God while shackled to a cold, stone floor (Acts 16).
Everyone has a down day once in a while, but a pessimistic life style does not give glory to God. One may even say that pessimism resembles false prophecy – because it does not seek God’s will and way but projects its own thoughts and words in place of God’s. On the other hand, true optimism has to be based on trusting God and accepting His will.
For the person who leans toward pessimism, a study of the love of God may be the cure. A revelation of God’s power and an understanding of the promises in His Word may wash away the tendency to see the worst in other people and circumstances, replacing it with great faith, which works by love.
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