A Message of Hope
I live in the lovely little town of Milford, Ohio, and every Wednesday I look forward to receiving the neighborhood paper for our community. The paper is filled with local happenings, events, awards and such, but close to the back of the paper it also lists court filings.
A few months ago I started reading those court filings. I was shocked at the number of foreclosures listed for just my county alone. One week I counted as many as 75 foreclosures; now the average is around 35 every week! The county has a population of nearly 200,000; and out of that population, Foreclosures.com lists a staggering 769 homes that are for sale due to foreclosures, tax lien, bankruptcy and other unfortunate situations. In April 2010 one in every 425 housing units received a foreclosure filing in the state of Ohio alone.
Every foreclosure mentioned in the paper has a sad story behind it. I recently heard a heartbreaking story of a real family in crisis.
This family had to shut the doors to their dream business because of the economy. Sadly, they had to inform the employees that they no longer had jobs. They were also going to lose their home because it was connected to the family business. The husband could not take the pressure anymore, so he decided to leave his wife right in the middle of the crisis. He even fled the country, leaving his wife to deal with all of it alone. The same week that their bankruptcy was filed she also had to file divorce papers.
Every foreclosure represents a family in crisis. Without hope, people make bad decisions to escape the crisis, which can take on many forms through drugs, alcohol, depression or just giving up. Some take a more drastic form of escape, leaving their family and even fleeing to another country. These families need a message of hope to direct them in the right way.
We have that message of hope that will lead them in the right way of life and will help them deal with their current trials. We have what the world is looking for! We as God's people have a duty and obligation to send out a message of hope to a tragic world. We have a responsibility to do whatever we can to lend support with our tithes, offerings and prayers to do the work that God has called us to do.
God told His disciples in Luke 12:48, "Everyone to whom much is given, from him much will be required; and to whom much has been committed, of him they will ask the more."
Much has been give to us! Let's become passionate about delivering that message of hope to a world that is in desperate need of it! UN
Course Content
Janet Treadway
Janet Treadway was born in Washington, D.C., but was raised in Knoxville, Tennessee. She started attending the Church of God with her mother at the age of 14 along with her twin brother, Jim.
She was baptized at the age of 19 in 1974. She has been involved in various activities, such as serving as the managing editor of UCG’s first teen magazine UsTeens, which was distributed worldwide and published in English and Spanish.
Janet’s first love is writing. She has contributed many articles in various publications such as Vertical Thought, Virtual Christian Magazine, United News and others. Her article “Take Action, Your Life May Depend on It” is also featured in the reprint “The Cycle of Abuse.” Janet draws from her own life’s experiences and challenges when she writes and is motivated to give readers hope that God will see them through anything.
Janet has worked in the home office of the United Church of God since 1998. She is married to Charles Treadway and has four children, David, Michelle, Michael and Josh, as well as six grandchildren and two granddogs, Jo Jo and Vinny.
