I came of age in the early 1960’s.  For me it was a wonderful time, full of hope for the future.  It was a time of idealism.  John F. Kennedy established the Peace Corps and several of my courageous college friends headed off to Africa to serve.  Martin Luther King Jr. sang “We will overcome” and we believed.  Our eyes had been opened to racial inequity, and we were sure our generation would put an end to it.  Perhaps it was our youth, but the future looked bright and promising.   

A lot has happened since then, some good, some bad.  But now it is my grandchildren who are coming of age.  I’m not sure what they see, but I look around and see anger and bitterness.  It disturbs me to think that this is the world our generation is leaving for them.  Where is the hope that filled our youth?  I pray for them, that they would not be discouraged and overwhelmed by this world of hatred and hostility.  Maybe you have young people in your family.  Perhaps you share these feelings.

Gloria Gaither tells a similar story.  It was 1969.  Bill was weak with mononucleosis.  Swirling around them was a world in flux and chaos.  The Civil Rights movement was going on; Watts had just burned to the ground.  The country was split apart by the Vietnam War.  She and Bill found out they were having their third child.  They thought, “Who would bring another baby into this world?” 

It was then that a good friend came to visit and heard their distress.  He laid his hands on them and prayed.  Just a simple act of faith, but they began to feel that God was in control.  Their destiny did not depend on the circumstances of the world.  Out of this time came the beautiful hymn, “Because He Lives.”  It has become their personal gift to Christians around the world.

“Because He lives, I can face tomorrow,
Because He lives, all fear is gone;
Because I know He holds the future,
And life is worth the living,
Just because He lives!”

To me this stanza is a great assurance.  Because He lives, I know that He holds the future in His hands, not just my future, but the future of my grandchildren as well.  My life is worth living and their lives will be worth living, because He lives.

There are so many renditions of this wonderful hymn, perhaps you will enjoy this one.

Judy