One True Hope.

From the front page of the newspaper to the deep, hidden corners of the human heart a cry is going up. It's the searching, longing cry of a culture and, in fact, a world in crisis. Where is the hope? Where is the peace? Where is the purpose and meaning for life here in the real world? The answer lies beyond the reaches of governmental policies and great humanitarian efforts, as needed and good as they may be. It lies in a lowly manger, a cruel cross, and an empty tomb. For it is here that we see the kingdom of heaven bursting onto the scene of what has often been called the "real world." Charles Colson calls it "a shining kingdom that reaches the darkest corners of every mind. A kingdom of deathless hope, of restless virtue, of endless peace."

God has heard our cry, He has sent His Son Jesus Christ, and "heaven has come to the real world."
Now is the time for those of us who embody this kingdom to defend the truth, overcome evil with good, and live lives that proclaim and display heaven in the real world. God Bless you!
~Steven Curtis Chapman, artist's note from Heaven in the Real World, 1994

God is so tender and good, friends, & He is speaking to us this very day. I re-found this CD two days ago. It was written in 1994, but the message for this very moment is pristinely clear:


“Where is the hope? I meet millions who tell me that they feel demoralized by the decay around us. Where is the hope? The hope that each of us has is not in who governs us, or what laws are passed, or what great things we do as a nation. Our hope is in the power of God working through the hearts of people, and that’s where our hope is in this country, and that’s where our hope is in life...”
~ Charles Colson

I saw it again today in the face of a little child * Looking through the eyes of fear & uncertainty * It echoed in a cry for freedom across the street & across the miles * Cries from the heart to find the missing part *

*** Where is the hope, where is the peace? * That will make this life complete * For every man, woman, boy & girl * Looking for heaven in the real world ***

To stand in the pouring rain & believe the sun will shine again * To know that the grave is not the end * To feel the embrace of grace & cross the line where real life begins * And to know in your heart you’ve found the missing part *

*** There is a hope, there is a peace * That will make this life complete * For every man, woman, boy & girl * Looking for heaven in the real world * Heaven in the real world ***

** It happened one night with a tiny baby’s birth * God heard creation crying & He sent heaven to earth **

*** He is the hope, He is the peace * That will make this life complete * For every man, woman, boy & girl * Looking for heaven in the real world * Heaven has come to the real world * Heaven has come, come to the real world * He is the hope, He is the peace * Jesus is heaven, heaven in the real world *

~~~