The ONLY Hope

Yesterday (Wednesday) was little Isaac Thompson's funeral service. I had the incredible honor and privilege of being asked to sing at his service. It was one of the hardest things I have been asked to do....but God is so gracious and I just prayed and prayed that I could get through the song and honor Isaac for his family, and although I was very nervous the entire song...I felt such a peace and strength right before I went up.

It wasn't me...God was there. He was present and I felt it in a real way.

I have really just been trying to process everything the past several days, trying to make sense of it all. And I can say that the answers haven't come.

It doesn't make sense and it isn't fair.

A coffin shouldn't be that small. And a parent shouldn't have to bury their child.

As many times as I have asked God why....I am sure Isaac's family have asked it a thousand times more. But even though we question, even though we scream that it isn't fair....God IS still here...He hears the cries of His people and He IS present.

The family asked that the pastor preach the Gospel message at Isaac's service.  They knew that there may be people there that didn't know about God's redemptive love, that couldn't claim Jesus as their Savior and they wanted to make sure that they had an opportunity to hear a message of hope.

He talked about that the ONLY hope we can have is in Jesus.  We can't have hope in this world and the only reason that Isaac's family can walk forward in this time of immense grief is because they know that this is not the end.

We will see Isaac again.  And as a people longing for the joys of Heaven, we hope that comes sooner than later.  I think that when a parent loses a child that longing for Heaven is even stronger.

But at least we have that hope, that promise that Isaac is healthy and healed and in the arms of his eternal Father. 

But do you have that hope?

What do you hope in? Is it things of this world? Things that we are promised will pass away?  Once again I am reminded that our time here is so short. We do not know the day or the hour.

Can you afford to put off making a real commitment to Christ? If you wait for tomorrow and tomorrow doesn't come....do you have the complete assurance that you will spend eternity in Heaven?

I believe that God was present yesterday because He grieves with us. And He carries us when we can't move ourselves.  There is comfort knowing that although we don't understand or agree with the hurt in this life....that we, as believers, are promised an eternity in glory with God...where all things will be made whole again.

My prayer tonight is that if you haven't made that commitment to a personal relationship with Christ....that you won't wait. I acknowledge that I am a terrible sinner and that I can never achieve the prefection needed to grant me "access" to our Holy Father. But God, in His mercy, sacrificed His ONLY Son so that my debt and your debt would be paid. All we have to do is accept His gift and turn to Him, giving Him our will and our life and trusting that He will be with us during our time here on earth.

My God knows about sacrifice and He meets us where we are tonight. He is present and He is our ONLY hope. I thank God for that truth tonight and I pray that you do as well.

I am attaching a video of the song "Untitled Hym" by Chris Rice.. It is a beautiful song of hope!