In all of these times, we must choose. We can believe that God has died, as Wiesel did, and that the presence of evil has extinguished faith forever. Or we can see, as Corrie ten Boom once said, that no pit is so deep that God’s love isn’t deeper still. We can try climbing out of the dark pit by our own efforts and exhaust our meager reserves of strength. Or we can depend upon the rope, letting the rope do its work; letting it bear us up toward the light.

Which will you choose?

I’m here to tell you that there is marvelous power, astounding power, supernatural power that comes when we cease our striving and simply begin to trust the rope—the infinite love of God. You need never let go of your hope, because God will never let go of His love for you.

NINE

God Loves You and Wants You with Him Forever

And if I go and prepare a place for you,

I will come again and receive you to Myself;

that where I am, there you may be also.

—JOHN 14:3

One of the most enchanting concepts in the human experience is the idea of home. The word home evokes memories of rest, security, and the presence of those we love most.

As I look back over my life, I have a mental picture of every house or apartment that I have lived in. Beginning with the house my parents lived in when I was born in Toledo, Ohio, to my present residence in El Cajon, California, I can picture them all. Altogether I have lived in fifteen different homes and can recall something special about each one. But two of the fifteen I remember with greater clarity than the others: the home in Cedarville, Ohio, where I grew up with my parents, my brother, and two sisters; and the home in El Cajon, where Donna and I brought up our four children.

These two homes were more than mere dwelling places. They were centers of activity and personal interaction, not only between family members but also with many friends who have spent hours with us. The people I have always loved and wanted to be with lived in those houses, and for that reason those places are sacred to me.

When my siblings and I became adults and began our own journeys in life, we moved out of our parents’ house, but we never stopped wanting to go back. At Christmas and during vacation days in the summer, we always found our way back home.