Success or Signficiance by John Grace, Director of Operations

I started my very first business while I was still in high school, at the age of 15. I would spend the next three decades working my tail off building a “successful” organization using the world’s value… a financial yardstick… as my only measure. Things went very well and our management team continually knocked the ball out of the park. While God was blessing us, looking back now, I realize He had a totally different view of what success really looks like. Through a few “defining moments,” God redirected my path from one of success to one of significance.

My wife Mary and I started attending HOPE back in 1991. It was the result of what I would term a “telemarketing call” that we received asking us if we were looking for a church to attend. It just so happened we were! We were shopping for a church for our middle daughter who was approaching confirmation age. We had no idea how one telephone call would totally redirect our lives, impacting us in ways that we would not have imagined. It was the start of our “rocket ride” with HOPE.

Anyone who knew me back then would tell you that my overall business philosophy focused on short-term, bottom-line results of the all-mighty monthly profits and sales figures. In fact, that measure became a template I used in every area of my life. By the mid-90s, Jeff invited me to attend a church leadership conference at Willow Creek in Barrington, Illinois. This life-changing experience would forever alter my definition of success. I’m not entirely certain how or what I heard at that conference, but I came away with a clearer sense of mission. I realized I needed to change my thought process and approach to have a greater, long-term impact in my personal life and in the community at large.

I’ll never forget my plane ride home from Willow Creek. I truly believe the Holy Spirit smacked me over the head. He began to inspire and show me how I could utilize the very skills I learned while running my business all those years, to broader areas where future generations could be impacted. HOPE was in the midst of a major capital campaign to raise funds to build our current facility. I asked Jeff if he’d let me get involved with the building team to help raise the needed funding. This experience taught me an important and valuable life lesson. “This effort wasn’t about building a lifeless monument. It was about a whole lot of people, pouring their God- given talents, resources, and abilities into life-filled moments with the people around us.” We were going to “change the landscape of Voorhees with a beacon of hope through Christ.

Well, I have since sold my business and now have the honor of working at HOPE as a volunteer. In my previous CEO role, we measured success in the short term. Being on staff here, I see firsthand how the HOPE Family touches so many lives through our various ministries. It’s through God’s love and His measure. That’s significant!

So, to that “telemarketer” who called my home eighteen years ago…Thanks!