Consider the number of coincidences that take place in each of our lives that keeps hope alive at times when we might otherwise have given up. It adds credence to the belief that there are no coincidences. For me the answer is clear, God is my hope.



Three years ago I began an unusual project. I had written a Christmas letter where I shared an answer I had received to a prayer. In that letter I pledged to collect answers to prayers from other people to share the next year. I invited the 80+ families on our Christmas card list to e-mail me experiences from their own lives. Unfortunately, I didn't receive a single response.

After waiting several months I thought that I would try a different approach. I decided to e-mail ministers all over the world explaining my Christmas project and asking them to share answers to their prayers with me for me to include in my next Christmas letter. Months went by with no response. I began to lose hope. I thought that I was going to have to give up my project for lack of material. But then something happened. Months after writing to dozens (or hundreds) of ministers - one responded with a story that was exactly what I had hoped for. A true life story of a prayer that was answered in a very dramatic way. The minister shared a beautiful story of an unselfish prayer for a despondent father. His story did more than provide the basis for my next Christmas letter - it also kept hope alive that I might find more people willing to share their own inspiring stories of hope and faith.

After that small success, I wasn't sure how to proceed. Sending dozens of e-mails to receive one response did not seem very efficient. Besides, I really wanted answers to prayers from ordinary people - not just ministers. I turned to a good friend who has a small internet business for advice. My friend listened to what I wanted and consulted a site designer. Creating a web site that would suit my needs turned out to be too expensive. The quoted price was almost $10,000.00. It was expensive as the site would need to allow people to contribute and add to the site. I could not afford to have a site designed that would meet my needs.

But, technology moved forward and solved the problem just in time. Public bulletin boards hit the internet and could be set up for very little money. Although not ideal it seemed to meet my needs. Within one week of setting up the site I had 100 visitors. More importantly, 3 people shared beautiful stories of how their own prayers have been answered. Hope springs eternal.