The Drowning Rat Experiment
Recently, I came across an interesting study conducted in the 1950s by Johns Hopkins University scientist Curt Richter. In that study, Richter and his team did experiments on both domesticated and wild rats to see how long the rats can survive in water before drowning. In the first experiment, the team placed the domesticated rats in jars of water and found that, the domesticated rats were able to swim around an average of 40-60 hours before tiring out and drowning. In the next experiment, the wild rats were subjected to the same situation and as before, were placed in jars of water. All the wild rats, which are naturally excellent swimmers, surprisingly lasted only minutes before drowning. What is noteworthy was that these wild rats had only been recently caught and were supposedly fierce and aggressive. The wild rats were expected to fight hard for survival but did not. The difference in responses between the two groups of rats was intriguing and thus the research team went on to find out what may have contributed to it.
In the second set of experiments, the team again placed the wild rats into the jars of water. But what was different this time was that the rats were taken out of the water after a few minutes, held for a while before being put back in the water again and the process was repeated a few times. Interestingly, the wild rats ended up swimming much longer than the previous set of wild rats which were left alone. In fact, some of the wild rats lasted as long as the domesticated rats or even longer.
So, what made the difference in the second set of experiments? Richter realised that the wild rats in the second set of experiments swam much longer and for many hours more because the wild rats were given… hope. The rats that had experienced the brief reprieve out of the water quickly learned that as long as they kept on swimming, there could be a chance that they would be rescued. Richter explained that “the rats quickly learn that the situation is not actually hopeless” and “after elimination of hopelessness the rats do not die”.
Hope – a Powerful Force
While the rats and humans are vastly different creatures, the findings from the study show us how hope can have such an incredible psychological force in our lives. The study shows us that having hope can lead to greater resilience. As long as one has hope, a person can remain resilient and continue to persevere in challenging situations. Just like the rats which were given a reason to keep swimming, hope gives us a reason to keep fighting and the strength to endure far longer than expected. Conversely, the state of hopelessness can drain us of our energy and the drive to press on. Therefore, it is important that we must all have hope.
Christian Hope
But more importantly, we need to remember that Christians have a hope that is far better and far greater than what the world knows it to be. Typically, when we hope for something, we desire for something in the future. However, our typical conception of hope is always accompanied by an element of uncertainty - the uncertainty that we may not attain future outcomes that we desire. When we say to someone “hope to see you soon”, we may not actually see that person soon enough, or we do not see that person at all after. When we hope that an unpleasant situation will turn better, there is this uncertainty that it may not. When a doctor tells a patient that he is hopeful that the patient will recover, there is a chance that the patient may not. In fact, when we use the word ‘hope’, we often already half expect something to turn out in the opposite manner.
But the hope that we have as Christians, as children of God, is different. The hope that we read in the Bible, is distinctively different from having hopes about material outcomes. . The Christian hope is not merely a desire, but an expectation that something good will definitely happen. And this separates believers from the world and what makes this Christian hope even more powerful. Peter describes this hope as ‘living hope’ in 1 Pet 1:3-5, a hope that is based on the fact that Christ has risen from the dead and that we can confidently look forward to an eternal inheritance in heaven that is incorruptible. This living hope gives us the certainty that we will be rewarded at the end of our earthly journey if we press on and not give up. When Peter said in 1 Pet 1:13, “rest your hope fully upon the grace that is to be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ”, we are told to be fully confident that Christ is coming again for His people. For Christians, this hope motivates us and helps us to deal with life’s difficulties.
“This hope we have as an anchor of the soul, both sure and steadfast, and which enters the Presence behind the veil” Heb 6:19
In Heb 6:19, Christian hope is also described as an anchor for the soul, akin to what an anchor does for a ship. While a ship may float and drift about when the storm hits, the ship will never stray too far from the harbour because of the anchor. As long as the anchor holds, the ship is safe from the treacherous water of the open sea. Likewise, the Christian hope that is in us should keep us safely secure in our faith, sure and steadfast even in the midst of trials and tribulations. Our minds should be at peace as long as our hope in God is firm. This hope should anchor us and drive us to want to live a godly life and to be able to persevere through the difficulties we face. While we may stumble and sin along the way, our hope in God keeps us close to Him instead of us drifting further and further away. In Heb 6:11-12, the writer encourages us to have the full assurance of hope and urges us to show the same diligence as the men of faith.
May we therefore be reminded of this Christian hope whenever we are struggling. May our God, the ‘God of hope’, helps us find joy and gives us peace in our heart (Rom 15:13).
“Now may the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, that you may abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit”. (Rom 15:13)