This week at Chapel we were joined by Tim & Marie Kuck, cofounders of Nathaniel’s Hope, a ministry dedicated to celebrating and assisting kids with special needs (VIP kids) and their families. The life and passing of their youngest child, Nathaniel at the age of 4 ½ in 2001 led the family to become aware of the needs of the special needs community. Tim and Marie realized after his passing that this was not the end, but the beginning of his story. In June of 2002, they responded to the call to birth Nathaniel’s Hope. The organization’s mission includes sharing hope and encouragement with VIP kids and their families, and educating and equipping the community, especially local churches, on ways to reach out and assist VIP families.
Below are a few takeaways from our time in Chapel with Tim & Marie Kuck!
Tim-
It’s choice not chance that determines destiny. You might be here today and may be straddling that fence, you may not be all in. By the grace of God, I came to a place at 19 that I surrendered and went with God. I don’t know who you’re hanging out with but you want to be spending time with people that will invest into you. If you’re with friends that can’t give you what you need, hang out with people who can. You don’t want to go to buy a house and buy the most expensive house in the neighborhood, you want to have the least expensive house and have your value be brought up.
Each one of us has a story. You’re penning words to your story today. You’re making a choice which words are being written. It’s a great thing but often we don’t take it seriously enough. Be a steward of your life. I don’t know where you’re at in how God orchestrates things but he does when we live our life for him.
Tough things happen in life, but how we respond is our choice. God works through all those things in his glory. Are we listening? Each one of us gets one life, it’s only by the grace of God that we can live his purpose.
This M-80 firecracker was given to me by my brother and has been sitting in my garage for 40 years. It was designed to go BANG. You’re designed to go BANG but it doesn’t happen unless you light a fuse. It’s been sitting in my garage for over 40 years but the purpose that it was designed to fulfill has not been fulfilled. You’re here today somewhere between 18-22, has your fuse been lit? Do you have an idea of what you’re going to do?
Who are you going to be and what are you going to do? By the grace of God, throw yourself into things trying to find out what God has planned for your life. Don’t be consumed by the status quo. Make a choice to make a difference.
Marie-
We all come from different backgrounds. I grew up in a broken home, my parents got divorced when I was 5. My dad had left our family and I felt at that time that had abandoned us. At a Chapel service in college a pastor came in and spoke of forgiveness and I remember going down to the alter and weeping for five hours. I wrote my dad this letter, asking him to forgive me. All of these years I felt like he messed up our family life, and that he should come and ask for forgiveness. At that time, the holy spirit took all this junk up and there was a real healing in my life. First time in my life, I went to dinner by myself with my dad.
As you think about your purpose, I just want to encourage you that whatever junk is in your past, I’m sorry if you had a hard family life or life wasn’t fair to you, but although life isn’t fair, God is faithful. And I want to encourage you that God’s purposes will prevail in your life there is nothing holding you back from living the life God’s dreamed for you. The things that have happened in the past will help shape who you are in the future.
We can grow bitter or better from things that happen to us in life. Grow bitter instead of better.
Ministry is not just in the pulpit. Ministry is everywhere you go.
God wants to take our weakness so he can be our strength and this is where he is able to work in our lives.
For more information on Nathaniel’s Hope, please visit www.nathanielshope.org. Outside of his work with Nathaniel’s Hope, Tim serves as the COO and Executive Vice President of Regal Boats, a privately held family business that manufactures a line of pleasure boats ranging from 19-53ft. For more information on Regal Boats, visit www.regalboats.com.
