bridge of hope by Jim Clampitt
MY NAME IS JIM , I ’ M AN EX-INMATE 1000 things had to go wrong for me to end up in prison , AND 1000 things had to go right for me to be standing before you now a better version of myself ; several steps closer to God ’ s version of me .
Three things will last forever — faith , hope , and love — and the greatest of these is love ( 1 Corinthians 13:13 ).
Paul makes a point of identifying FAITH , HOPE & LOVE .
Why is it important to highlight that these three things will last forever ? Because we cannot thrive in our walk with Christ without them . They are the formula to riding this majestic wave of life .
MY DARK SEASON In the spring of 2010 , the wheels fell completely off of my life . In April , my oldest daughter became pregnant at 15 . In May , my grandfather died . In June , I was involved in an automobile accident that took a man ’ s life . This started a chain reaction of events that resulted in the loss of my home , most of my property , my standing in the community , my license to practice law , and criminal convictions that made me a felon and resulted in prison time .
I fell far and hard off the prideful and arrogant pedestal I had constructed for myself . Pain , despair , and suffering replaced pride and arrogance as my companions . At times the darkness was overwhelming . Few things in life illustrate your weakness and irrelevance like a prison cell . Without a biblical perspective , you are a number , a piece of meat , human cattle to be housed and fed .
FAITH It was clear to me I had a very stark choice . Would I become a victim ? Someone who spent the rest of my life blaming others and circumstance and dreaming of the way things used to be . Or would I become God ’ s version of me ? Someone who reads the Word , prays , focuses on his blessings and gives back to the Kingdom as much as God will allow . You see , no matter where you are in life , we all have to face the question : If everything is stripped away .
If I were lying on a prison cell floor , with nothing but time and my thoughts , is my relationship with God enough to sustain me ? Can I live with real joy in my heart if I have nothing else but God ? When I was able to answer that question the right way I began to change dramatically .
My focus was constantly and consistently pushed , pulled and sometimes dragged back to my blessings . I forced myself to search out what the Lord would have me do for Him each day . I cherished time in the Word and in prayer . The Bible became a need and prayer was like talking to my best friend . I no longer cared about the property , and standing I had lost and instead wondered how the Lord would use my burdens and obstacles for His plan .
If we don ’ t ever plug into God through our faith , we can never expect to have His power in our life or for His energy to flow out to others . Imagine living in a modern fully furnished house , but never plugging anything into the electricity or flipping on any of the power switches . The juice is there , but without faith we can never draw the power into our life .
HOPE Was it wonderful and easy from the point I truly committed to the Lord ? Of course not , I was in prison . I shed countless tears and rode a regular rollercoaster of emotion in an effort to look beyond the pain and limitations of my present condition . But I had divine perspective , I had a biblical focus and both of those gave me a sustained hope that would pull me out of the present darkness and push me toward a better tomorrow .
Hope is the bridge , between the power of Christ as it flows into our life through faith , and that same energy flows out to others in love and service . Anytime we find ourselves in a dark season , we always have the choice to turn our why ’ s into what ’ s .
To turn our , ‘ Why me , why this , why now ?’ Into , ‘ What would you have me see Lord , learn Lord , do Lord and say Lord .’ There are no accidents in the Kingdom of God . Everything happens according to His Plan and for His purpose . Whatever dark season in which you find yourself , is a direct result of what God intended or by His specific permission . Nothing gets to us unless it goes by our Father .
In every dark season , we have the option of looking upward for our focus and outward for opportunities to serve , OR to look inward at our pain , grief , bitterness , sadness and anger .
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