Václav Havel, the last president of Czechoslovakia, wrote

[Hope] is not the conviction that something will turn out well, but the certainty that something makes sense, regardless of how it turns out. (Vaclav Havel, “Disturbing the Peace”)

This is easier said than done. Some of life’s greatest heartaches occur when life in this world disappoints us. Countless applicants at our home for mothers, visitors at our pregnancy care centers, and callers to our CLR National Office have been crushed by frustrated hopes in this world. An unplanned pregnancy often leads to the death of a child. A medical complication or even the debilitating effects of aging send seniors spiraling into hopelessness. Often, overwhelmed by crisis, people crumble because of life’s disappointments.

The world’s version of hope will always disappoint. The reformed theologian, John Calvin, wrote:

We undertake all things as if we were establishing immortality for ourselves on earth. If we see a dead body, we may philosophize briefly about the fleeting nature of life, but the moment we turn away from the sight, the thought of our own perpetuity remains fixed in our minds. (John Calvin, Institutes of the Christian Religion, Book 1, Chapter 1, Section 3 (1.1.3)

For millennia, human beings have struggled to create heaven on earth. In pursuing more comfort, riches, and accolades, we are crushed by interruptions in those pursuits. And even when life goes as planned, it will eventually be crushed by the reality of death.

Steve Jobs, the inventor and co-founder of Apple, Inc., learned of his terminal diagnosis of pancreatic cancer. It compelled him to deliver these words at a commencement exercise:

Remembering that you are going to die is the best way I know to avoid the trap of thinking you have something to lose. (Steve Jobs, commencement address to Stanford University, 2005)

Jobs wanted to inspire the graduates to be bold and courageous as they embrace life’s opportunities. In the end, however, it always disappoints. The riches tarnish (Matthew 6:19-21), the accomplishments fade (Ecclesiastes 2:11), and even our worldly existence will fade from memory (Psalm 103:15-16). Yet, as observed by Calvin, we pretend it won’t end and continue to chart our course to create heaven on earth.

C.S. Lewis wrote:

If I find in myself a desire which no experience in this world can satisfy, the most probable explanation is that I was made for another world. (C.S. Lewis, “Mere Christianity”)

Jesus Christ surely gave us an example to emulate for life in this world (1 Peter 2:21). But he did so much more than that. The Apostle Paul wrote:

“If only for this life we have hope in Christ, we are of all people most to be pitied.” (1 Corinthians 15:19, NIV)

The complete story must be told. Following his life and death, the story continues. Jesus pronounced victory in hell (1 Peter 3:19) and stepped out of the tomb resurrected (Matthew 28:5-6).

As a resurrected dead person, he had hundreds of witnesses (1 Corinthians 15:6). Think about that. In the resurrection of Jesus Christ, we have more eyewitness evidence that it happened than the countless historical events we have always accepted as fact. Try to find 500 eyewitnesses who met William Shakespeare, witnessed landing on the moon, or witnessed that John Wilkes Booth assassinated President Lincoln.

Other historical events are indeed important, but not nearly as consequential as the historical event that on the first Easter, the tomb was empty, the risen Savior appeared before the women and his disciples, and then appeared to more than 500 people before his ascension into heaven. And many of those people were around 20 years later to talk about it.

What we do at Christian Life Resources and New Beginnings—A Home for Mothers pivots on Jesus Christ’s resurrection. If he were merely a gifted man who showed us how to be kind and sacrificial, “we are of all people most to be pitied.” The hope we have does not disappoint us (Romans 5:5). The writer to the Hebrews put it this way:

“Since the children have flesh and blood, he [Jesus] too shared in their humanity so that by his death he might break the power of him who holds the power of death—that is, the devil—and free those who all their lives were held in slavery by their fear of death.” (Hebrews 2:14-15, NIV)

The message of Christian Life Resources is much more than “You don’t have to have an abortion” or “Life is still worth living, even when it is poorer in quality.” Our message centers on Christ’s death and resurrection. Even with an unplanned pregnancy and a poorer quality of life, you have all the hope the world can never give. You have eternal life.

Thank you for supporting this resurrection-based ministry of Christian Life Resources. While we do a lot of helping, we especially look to recalibrate lives so that they can rest in the sure promises of eternity. Why? Because “He is risen!” He has risen, indeed!