ASSURANCE OF THINGS HOPE FOR

ASSURANCE OF THINGS HOPED FOR

Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.
Hebrews 11:1 (JST, emphasis added)

Our youngest of 8 had just completed first grade. I could go into the scary and somewhat unpleasant details, but suffice it to say there were to be no more children. My wife made an announcement, quite timidly, but an announcement just the same:

“I should probably go back to school and finish my degree.” (Some yayhoo had come along and married her in the middle of her sophomore year.)

“Sounds good,” I replied.

“But I’ve been out of school for more than 20 years! I’m afraid my brain has turned to schmushed peas, you know, like we’ve been feeding the babies . . .”

“What about Carolyn?”

“My friend Carolyn! She did it, didn’t she! If Carolyn can do it, maybe there’s hope for me.”

“You did fine before you met me.”

“You call a B minus average fine? Besides, my brain hadn’t gotten scrambled by babies yet. I think I’ll give it a shot, though. You won’t hate me if I flunk out, will you?”

She applied to the local university, was admitted, and had registered for classes.

Fortunately our college freshman daughter was still home for the summer. Her out of state school started a week after the local one. In a classic case of role reversal, daughter took a trembling mother by the hand and deposited her gently at the door of her first class, constantly reassuring her that all would be well.

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Three years later, all the children were present for the occasion (except for our second son, who somehow felt that completing his mission in Russia was even more important than his mother’s college graduation). Her parents came too, from California. It was an event to ever remember. She had earned straight A’s since going back.

Her “assurance of things hoped for” had truly come to pass.