Because She Believed - A Story of Faith and Hope
Have you ever heard an account of God’s grace in someone’s life and your heart reacted with skepticism. That little voice inside said, this can’t be true… I’ve never experienced anything like that. I imagine that many of the people who witnessed the accounts of God in the lives of people throughout the Bible had the same doubts. Their hearts were likely just as incredulous as yours is with our story. Why are we unable or unwilling to believe God is still the God of the Bible and He is still performing marvelous and miraculous works in the lives of His children?
The celebration service was a beautiful testimony of God’s grace and His faithfulness in our lives. After Julie’s brother, Jimmy, welcomed everyone and opened the service in prayer, we played Big Daddy Weave’s “My Story,” with the main point being “To tell you our story is to tell of Him.” When the song finished, Kristen’s best friend Brooke shared the first poem from Kristen’s perspective.
Kristen’s poem was followed by Casting Crown’s “Who Am I,” a song that supported my perspective as her father, expressed in the second poem. I opened my part with a brief summary of my time with God over the two months leading up to Kristen’s accident, after which I shared the second poem.
Last, but surely not least, I shared poem number three from God’s perspective. When I was finished, we played the last song, 7eventh Time Down’s “God Is on the Move.” Given our experience up to this point, we definitely felt God was on the move, and we were privileged to be with Him on this journey. The service closed with our pastor sharing Scripture from 2 Corinthians 4, “Let light shine out of darkness” and encouraging everyone to seek the Lord. As he said that day, I reiterate now. If you don’t know the Lord or you have questions regarding sin and God’s grace, please speak to someone you trust or contact us.
After the service, we had a joyful time of fellowship with those who attended. We shared many hugs and tears as our friends and family visited with us. It was good to see so many friends we hadn’t seen in quite a while and to remember the miles and years that had passed as we journeyed with the Lord. This life is short. It is good to reflect on the time that has passed and to appreciate each new day.
We thoroughly enjoyed sharing our day of celebration with so many loved ones but were happy to get home and rest afterward. We were weary beyond anything we had experienced before. The joy of the Lord was our strength during the days after Kristen’s passing. The heartache of knowing we would never hear her voice or feel her touch in this life was especially heavy. There is a brokenness when a parent loses a child that is quite different than I could have imagined. As a father, I felt especially burdened by my inability to keep my child safe from harm. God had walked with me through the trial, but it was still crushing to my flesh.
So when we came home, we kept the visiting to a minimum so we could settle in early. We had the graveside service the next day, and we needed as much rest as we could manage. We were keeping the service small, with just close family. We knew Kristen had left her shell and was dancing with Jesus. We wanted it to be a time for those who remained behind to share love and memories with each other. My thoughts centered on being careful to discern God’s voice from the Enemy’s during this difficult time. God’s voice is comforting and convicting, drawing us closer to Him. He encourages us to set aside anything that is a distraction from His path for us. His voice brings focus. The Enemy accuses us and attempts to separate us from God. He will try to use guilt as leverage against us. His voice brings chaos. We must be diligent to distinguish between the two if we are to move toward healing.
“Little children, you are from God and have overcome them, for he who is in you is greater than he who is in the world” (1 John 4:4).
When we returned home after the burial service, Lauren called and said a producer from the local ABC television station had heard about Kristen’s accident and the social media campaign we were using to share her faith. They had contacted her and asked if we would consider sharing Kristen’s story on air. We said we’d love to share her story of faith and hope in Jesus. We told them we hoped her faith would inspire people to seek Jesus and that through her death, other teens would learn about God.
The reporter who came for our interview was gentle with us as she asked questions regarding Kristen’s life and faith. By God’s grace, she captured the essence of His message of faith and hope and our desire for others to know His intimate presence in the trials of life. It turned out to be a beautiful testimony of Kristen’s relationship with her Heavenly Father, her faith, her family, and her friends, as well as a reminder of the fragility of life.
We never know the impact our lives will have on others, even after we have gone on to be with the Lord. That is the most beautiful part of Kristen’s story. Thousands saw the testimony of her faith on live TV or via the video posted on the TV station’s website. Thousands more saw her story via her Facebook fan page. Within the first month, Kristen’s story on Facebook had been seen in over 60 countries and by more than 16,000 people. God is truly on the move. This small girl from a tiny island nation was serving as a testimony to thousands because of her faith in Christ. Like the woman at the well who spread faith throughout her city when she told others about her encounter with Jesus, Kristen is still spreading faith around the world because of her personal experience with Him.
Part of her struggle as a child was that we moved many times as we followed God where He led us. We rarely questioned how much we would sacrifice or how we would accomplish what He gave us to do. When He said go, we went without hesitation. Kristen sometimes questioned why we had to move. At these times, Julie told her that God would use her many moves for His glory someday. After Kristen’s accident, God began using the many points of contact we had made around the world to spread faith through the testimony of Kristen’s life and death.
I have been somewhat reserved thus far as I have shared our walk of faith. I know for many of our readers, our perspective of intimacy with God will seem extreme or unrealistic. Some will see our story as incredible, while others will see it as unbelievable. Your reaction will depend on the measure of faith and grace you have experienced with God in your own life. Your perspective will be influenced by the intimacy that you have shared with Him in your personal trials and triumphs.
Someone once commented to us that they didn’t have any big “God stories.” In reality, God has given each of us a measure of faith and a measure of grace according to our need and His purpose. Our experience with God’s grace is a matter of perspective. Some have endured greater trials, and God has given them a larger measure of faith and grace. Others may have lesser trials and may need a smaller measure. So in context, a smaller trial may feel very similar to a larger trial because God gives us what is needed for each. We must fully trust Him in every circumstance. In so doing, we will have exactly what we need to overcome any obstacle or accomplish any work He has given us.
Jesus tells us,
“According to your faith be it done to you” (Mathew 9:29).
Yes, God’s love and grace are almost impossible to believe. He sent His Son to suffer and die for us, His enemies. He died for those who despised Him. Such love and grace are incomprehensible. They are beyond belief… unless you have faith!
Many have struggled to receive the story I shared regarding the two months leading up to Kristen’s accident and the death of her physical body. If you do not believe God still speaks to us, then why don’t you?
- Has God stopped speaking to His children?
- Is anyone too insignificant to warrant His attention?
- Has His Spirit left us?
- Has His Spirit stopped teaching and guiding us?
- Has God stopped drawing us to Himself?
- Is God no longer intimate with those He redeemed at great personal cost?
- Has God stopped working all things together for good for those who love Him?
- Is the LORD no longer near to the brokenhearted?
- Has God stopped saving those who are crushed in spirit?
If you do not believe that God has left us, then why would you not believe He is still intimate with us?
- Has religion taught you to discount the things spoken of in God’s Word? Have your religious leaders failed to teach you about the intimacy of God? Have they neglected the things of God’s Spirit… the Spirit He left with us as a guarantee of our future with Him? Have you ignored His Spirit so long that you can’t remember what it’s like to hear Him speak to you?
- Have you ever let God out of your denominational box?
- Are you walking by sight instead of by faith?
- Are you equating God’s blessing with material gain and earthly comfort?
So what does it mean “to walk by faith and not by sight?”
“Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen… By faith we understand that the universe was created by the word of God, so that what is seen was not made out of things that are visible” (Hebrews 11:1-3).
Yes, my story of intimacy with God is incredible. God’s grace is incredible! His love for us is incredible! God’s grace is so far beyond the expectations of His children that we are often incredulous when we see it in action. Many are suspect of its authenticity in the lives of others when it seems that others have had a more tangible experience with grace than they have.
“Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever. Amen” (Ephesians 3:20-21).
My story of faith and hope is amazing to some and hard to believe to others. It really depends on how they perceive the God of the Bible!
My God is surely alive, and His Spirit has never left me; in any circumstance; not even for a moment!
Embrace the intimacy of His Spirit within us…
“The natural person does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are folly to him, and he is not able to understand them, because they are spiritually discerned” (1 Corinthians 2:14).
If we are honest, most of us long for intimacy with our spouse, our family, and our friends. But even this intimacy is limited. It is only a shadow of the reality God offers us through His Son and His Spirit. Throughout His Word, God calls us His “beloved.” That is the context of His intimacy. Please don’t settle for a shadow and miss out on His fullness.
The following two verses have helped me keep my eyes and my heart focused on Jesus.
“I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing” (John 15:5).
“But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you” (Matthew 6:33).
He left us His Spirit because we must “be” in Him to “do” for Him. Any fruit we have is an overflow of God’s Spirit working in and through us.
