As I reflect on the ministry I am privileged to serve in, there are many, many things to be thankful for. To list them all would be impossible. So I will share just one...
A few weeks ago, I was privileged to attend the wedding of one of our graduate girls. It was a beautiful ceremony. The bride herself sang a song of worship to the Lord. The groom could not stop beaming with joy.
Larissa* is 20 years old and has a 9-year-old daughter, evidence of her stolen childhood. She came to Hope at the age of 12, already tired with life, broken, and wanting something more. She is now married to a wonderful, godly young man whose love for her was written in his ear-to-ear smile on their wedding day. They are both working, involved in their church, and committed to the Lord. Together, they are raising Larissa's daughter in a home that knows the love of God.
So this Thanksgiving, it is Larissa that I am thankful for. I am thankful that she no longer is bound in a life destroyed by sin. I am thankful that she knows the love of the Father. I am thankful that her daughter will know His love. And I am thankful that she is just one of many, many girls that have received the transformational hope of Christ.
*The name has been changed, but the story is true.