ZPCBlog

About the author: Jackie and I have been blessed with 37 years of marriage. We have two grown children, Ashley and Connor, who live close by with their families. We have two wonderful grandchildren that we are blessed to share life with, 11-year-old Jackson, and a 2-year-old, Amalia. We are also blessed to have our 15-year-old nephew, Dhani live with us. He is growing up fast and soon will be driving! We have been a part of the ZPC community for many years, beginning in 1997. I am a past elder and currently serving on the Mission Commission and active with the Kairos Prison Ministry. Jackie is a deacon and serves with the bereavement team and with middle school ministries.

Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In His great mercy He has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.
1 Peter 1:3

Praise God indeed! For he has given us a LIVING HOPE! As I sit here typing these words on Thanksgiving morning, I am overwhelmed with gratitude for the many blessings our great and merciful God has poured out upon me. All undeserved. I am thankful for my family and the love that we share. I am thankful for good health. I am thankful for people that God has put in my life who have shaped the person that I am now. I am thankful for the opportunities God has given me to serve him and share his love with others. And I am thankful for my church home at ZPC where we can worship him together.

Hope is found only in our Lord Jesus Christ. Apart from him we are all hopeless. Jesus gave me a new birth when I attended a Great Banquet many years ago. Before that time, I did not feel hopeless. But I did not know how truly hopeless I was. Jesus opened my eyes and showed me his great love through the actions of others. We don’t realize how hopeless we are until tragedy hits. Something that we have no control over. Something that is out of our hands to control. We all face tragedy and loss in this broken world. But those of us who are in Christ Jesus have a Living Hope. A Hope that never dies.

My worst tragedy occurred 12 years ago when my 3-month-old granddaughter Charlotte died in her sleep at the daycare. I was the first member of my family who arrived on the scene. The pain and memory of what I witnessed and what we all experienced as a family on that day will never leave me. Indescribable heartbreak. There was nothing that I or anyone could do. For many long months, all my hope was lost. Apart from Jesus, hearts only grow harder when tragedies like that hit. Today, I am able to thank God for the three months we had to hold Charlotte in our arms and feel her love for us. It took many years to get to this point. But now, I live for the glorious day when we will all be reunited with our granddaughter and all our loved ones who are with the Lord through his great mercy.

After I went through the Great Banquet, I started listening to a lot of Christian Rock music. One of my favorite bands is Third Day. In the late 90s they recorded a song entitled My Hope is You. It is based upon Psalm 39 and 25. I invite you to listen to it if you can. It will most assuredly inspire you and motivate you to put the Living Hope that you have been given in Jesus Christ into action. We who have been given such Hope are called to share it with others and to be his witnesses. This Advent season and throughout the year look for opportunities to shine the light of Hope into the lives of others, especially those who are hopelessly lost without it. All for his glory!

Prayer

To You, O Lord, I lift my soul. In You, O God, I place my trust. Do not let me be put to shame, nor let my enemies triumph over me. My Hope is You. Show me Your ways. Guide me in Truth. In all my days, my Hope is You. I am, O Lord, filled with Your love. You are, O God, my salvation. Guard my life and rescue me. My broken spirit shouts, my mended heart cries out, my Hope is You. Amen.

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