Taking A Walk Down Memory Lane

Today I took a walk down memory lane....Not the kind of walk where you drag out your yearbooks and remember the glory days....I literally walked....Tonight I attended the Heart of Hope Banquet (www.heartofhopeministry.com) at the school where most of my early childhood was spent. The old Grawood Christian School. It's dilapidated and falling apart. To most it would look perfect for the wrecking ball. It's ceilings are falling down, most of the windows have been shattered by vandals. People would look at it and see it as nothing more than a dump. I look at it and I remember the hours spent walking those halls. I see the football field I cheered on as a junior high cheerleader. I could still see Mrs. Mathis in the office behind the desk. I could see Mrs. McLaughlin teaching in the back classroom. I remembered the water fountain; the gym; where seventh grade homeroom was. It was like stepping back in time only the building is run down and in need of some serious renovations. As Shelly, Dennis and I walked the halls, I couldn't help but think, that's how the world used to see me. Run down in need of a lot of repairs. Most people would look at this building, like they looked at me, and see no hope....But not God.

He looked at this building, much like He looks at us. He sees hope where the world sees none. With patience, love and gentleness He rebuilds us, just like the Board of Directors looks at Grawood and sees hope. They are taking a building that is virtually on it's knees; they are wiping away the ugliness, the damage and the filth and are turning into a beacon for those who feel there is no hope. By the end of this year, Grawood will be a home where girls who are pregnant can come to make what will most likely be the most difficult choice of their young lives. Be a parent or be a birth mother. If they choose to be a parent, they will be equipped with the proper tools to raise their child. If they choose to place their child up for adoption, they will be guided down that path. Either way, Grawood will now take on a new role. A role that will glorify God with it's new roof, new paint and new renovations. Much like what happens to us after we accept the gift of salvation.

While we have no idea who will walk those halls and find hope again, we can know one thing for sure. We've all been like Grawood....We've all experienced what the hope we find in God can do. It can take a life or a building that is falling apart; turn it around and use us and it for His glory.