I hope you had a chance to read my post last week about my friend Joe Matera and to look at the trailer to the movie about his life and ministry. Joe lost his battle to cancer over the weekend. I hesitate to say lost because the victory that cancer claimed this week is a very temporary one at best. The story that is uniquely Joe’s, his wife Laura’s and their girls is a story of hope, joy and a victory that is anything but temporary.
The apostle Paul once wrote, “we want you to know what will happen to the believers who have died so you will not grieve like people who have no hope. For since we believe that Jesus died and was raised to life again, we also believe that when Jesus returns, God will bring back with him the believers who have died.”
When Paul speaks of hope, it’s not in the same way most of us think. It’s not the same as, “I hope it doesn’t rain or I hope I get that promotion.” It’s hope in the sense of a firm anticipation; a reliance and certainty of what is to come.
I’m not in the habit of using my blog to push my faith on my readers. I realize I reach a vast scope of people from various backgrounds and belief systems. But just as I would hope if someone found a cure for cancer, they’d want to share with as many people as possible, I feel compelled to share with my readers the “hope” and certainty that Joe and I have. It’s a hope that one day (and for Joe that day is now) we will stand before the God of the universe and give an account of our lives. The great news is that through a relationship with Jesus Christ, we like Joe can have the hope, the certainty of an eternity with Him.
A celebration of Joe’s life will take place this weekend at the Ocean City Tabernacle. Here is a link to the information about times and details.
Please share this post with your family and friends on social networks. Joe would want as many people as possible to know his story and the hope it offers.
Jeff Whitaker 