It is easy for it to become a very selfish thing — “look what I’ve got” — as opposed to “by the grace of God look at this amazing thing that he’s been inviting people into for thousands of years.” And that is quite an awe-inspiring, amazing thing. What is at the heart of what you do?

Hope. There is the perspective of the person who pretends that everything is fine — happy people perspective, “this it the day God has made,” but doesn’t seem to acknowledge how bloody and difficult the world is. Then there is the deconstructionist voice of despair that says, I see how rough it is and how horrible and hard life is—all they have is commiserating with you. Then there is this third category of voices of people who acknowledge how things really are and still have hope. And those are always the people who inspire me so much.

Who are the people, known and unknown, who have impacted you?

I met a woman who is part of our church. She’s probably in her mid-50s, and she said when she and her husband were first married they were unable to conceive. So they went to an adoption agency and said “Give us all the children that no one else wants. Give us the children

with the most severe and psychological emotional trauma. Give us the children with the worst physical challenges, and my husband and I will take them.” So she said that it has been 30, 35 years now and her house has been filled over the years. — Beliefnet.com, (Based on an interview with Rob Bell)