"Discuss some of the reasons offered in the Psalms for long-term optimism."

    As we read through the Psalms we find David and others in many different situations.  The people in Psalms find themselves in quite a "pickle" very frequently but they never deserted God.  Why?  Because they knew that as long as they followed God's instructions, that he would protect them from their enemies and occasionally, themselves.  In return for their "anti-desertion" God never deserted them.  He would sometimes leave for a certain portion of time, but he would NEVER desert those who truly loved him.  The people in Psalms were sad at times but knew that God would prevail over the wicked and this is the reason for their long-term optimism.  Without this optimism, the people in Psalms would be "dead in the water" so to speak. They would only be focusing on the bad and in the end, the bad circumstances would have taken over.
 
     Just like those people in the Psalms, we need long-term optimism in order to prevail over the hard, even dangerous situations in our own lives.  Weather it be in politics, sickness, or our own little problems in every day life, stay optimistic!  The Psalms teach us that if we don't, then we will eventually be taken over by our grief and sorrow.  Don't let those ridiculous things weigh you down!  Get up, brush off the dust, and remember just like those in the Psalms, you will prevail!