“I want to communicate to you that I don’t hang out at that place of fear…of questioning what *might* happen. I think there’s something profound about hope. I think there’s something so meaningful when you cling to something beyond what you know and understand. And when that’s in there, deep in your head and in your heart, and you believe it with every ounce of your body- something happens. Hope heals…where it hurts the most, which is your soul.”
–Katherine Wolf
This May will mark my 7th year of blogging, and man am I looking forward to journaling here again this year! This place, like me, seems to change a little bit from year to year. I sure do love that about blogging though. It’s like having a big, wide-open space to create, where anything is possible, ya know? 😀
One of my favorite ways to fill these pages are with posts about people and places that inspire me. Today, I’d like to introduce you to my friend, Katherine Wolf and her ministry, Hope Heals. She and her husband, Jay Wolf III, used to live here in Alabama, but they moved to California in 2004. They welcomed their son, James, into the world in the Fall of 2007.
In April of 2008, at the age of twenty-six, Katherine suffered a massive brain stem stroke while (then) six-month-old, James, slept in the next room. Katherine was in the ICU, on life support for 40 days. She was not expected to live or recover, but I will let Katherine (and Jay!) tell you what happened next…
Isn’t that Power-full!!!
Today, Katherine and Jay are missionaries of hope- messengers who have come a long way to bring the good news that hope in Christ heals our souls. They celebrate the beauty and the pain because they know that each day is a gift from God.
Katherine writes, “For us, hope has not been in good thoughts or the positivity of the human spirit. As nice as they are, those things fade shockingly fast when you experience the deepest pains of life. The hope we desperately cling to with every fiber of our being is the only true hope that heals–hope in Jesus Christ. We are not undone by the wind and the waves, and every day that long-awaited shore gets clearer and brighter and closer. One day the arc of our stories will all make perfect sense. One day we will trace the lines of our scars and find them to have fallen in the most pleasant of places, to see in them our great inheritance. Until then, we will look up at the calendar and on those certain combinations of letters and numbers our stomachs will still flutter and our hearts will still feel a bit heavier. And that’s OK. What has happened to me is extreme; but, it’s similar to what everyone deals with. I couldn’t walk, but who feels free even when they can? My face is messed up. It’s frozen, paralyzed. But who feels beautiful even when they are normal? My stroke makes it hard to eat, but who feels satisfied even when they can eat? My voice is messed up, but who feels understood even when they can speak? No one. So, no matter the situation, people identify with me and what I am living out. When God is all you have, you realize that God is all you ever needed”.
(photo: Alex Wolf)
I understand why they love California so much, but I sure do wish those three would move back to ‘Bama! 😀
(photo: Alex Wolf)
I’d love to invite you to visit Katherine and Jay’s website/blog for more encouragement and information about their ministry: Hope Heals. You can also connect with Katherine through her shop, on Facebook, Twitter (@HopeHeals) and Instagram (@HopeHeals), and you will be so blessed by the photos and messages she shares! Katherine often tags her Instagram posts with the hashtags #dontwaittocelebrate and #tooblessedtobebitter. Katherine says, “challenges can make you bitter or beautiful“. What a Gift to see her choose beautiful.
Bless her & her family! Such a remarkable recovery #HOPEWORKS
HNY !!
Paige.Rose
Beautiful testimony of Our Faithful Lord. Thank you for posting. He is our hope in ALL things. “These temporary, light, afflictions are creating in us an eternal weight of glory.”
As I was reading this, I was thinking………”what a beautiful person, inside and out”.
Awesome story.
Thanks for sharing. I can’t wait to peek at her blog.
Thanks,
Layla
What an amazing story … Thank you for sharing this hope.
“Hope heals” … What a great next blog threads tshirt! 🙂
I was thinking the same thing! When will Layla sell t-shirts with “Hope Heals” on them so we may help in the ministry and advertise it at the same time?! I am always wearing my special Lettered Cottage t-shirts and sharing the story behind them. I’d love to wear a Lettered Cottage/Hope Heals t-shirt and share Katherine’s story as well! God bless them.
Hi Dawn!
Here’s a link to Katherine’s shop, where you can find all of her gorgeous Hope Heals goodies:
http://hopehealsshop.myshopify.com
🙂
And their big announcement!!! Amazing Grace, their family is blessed…. And what inspiration of LOVE and HOPE! Thanks Layla for introducing this beautiful family! ~Kim
YES!!! I absolutely squealed when I heard the news! 😀
Wow!!!!! What an incredible story!! What a beautiful testimony to God’s goodness, faithfulness and love! Can’t wait to plug in with her website and such. Thank you for sharing Layla!
Layla, I’m crying as I type this. I’ve watched Katherine’s video and am so inspired by their story of hope. Thank you for this post. I will follow them on Instagram and their blog. x
Missing my son today and clinging to these words.
Thanks for introducing us to such a beautiful family with an amazing testimony. Reading and watching their story has really touched me in so many ways. I cried and cried; I don’t know how many times. BEATIFUL! I’m heading over to their blog now.
Thanks again for sharing.
Really brings home how blessed each of us are, every breath we take. What an amazing story of God’s faithfulness, and two followers putting their trust completely in Him. He never makes mistakes, He never fails. Thank you so much for sharing.
Beautiful! Thank you for sharing.
Layla, thanks for this message. The idea that Hope Heals was exactly the message I needed to hear today. Bless you & this beautiful family. Happy New Year!
Thank you, Layla, for introducing me to this family. Your post is a powerful reminder that our true hope is in Jesus Christ, and Him alone.
These lines, from Katherine, are profound and touched me deeply….”One day the arc of our stories will all make perfect sense. One day we will trace the lines of our scars and find them to have fallen in the most pleasant of places, to see in them our great inheritance.” AMEN and AMEN!!!
Exactly what I needed to hear today after some major suffering going on in my life right now. I know all this to be true, but my soul needed a reminder. This was God’s encouragement to me today as I face some deep valley’s!
Although there were plenty of tears throughout the video I can’t help but to now feel joy for this amazing couple and their son. Their message is one that I will hold on to.
Layla,
Thank-you so much for sharing their story with us, a true gift for the beginning of a New Year.
Layla, this is a truly touching and inspiring story. Thank you for sharing this. I think that there are just too many times when people, including myself, forget to be thankful for what they already have. I guess I was complaing a bit too much recently, so my best friend asked me to do one thing each day throughout January to remind me there is still a lot of great things going on in my life. She asked me to text her a message every single day of Janaury and tell what I am thankful for on that day. When I think of the story you shared, I just my say it now, I’m really thankful for a friend like that who keeps showing me life is good, we just need to be more aware of it. Thank you and God bless. A.
Just met Katherine in December when she was brought to our Church in Wheaton IL. What a powerful speaker. I love her spirit, I love her! God Bless
Unbelievable – thank you for sharing that. I will follow.
Oh, Layla, thankful I watched this on a Friday night wearing no makeup. “Hope” is my least favorite word and biggest struggle. This gave me hope – in a positive way.
Thank you for sharing this story, Layla! I have been fighting my own health battle for many years, but nothing compared to what Katherine has been through! 2014 was a year of amazing blessing for me as it was the first full calendar year since 2004 that I didn’t suffer any symptoms from my chronic illness (ulcerative colitis). God has done many amazing things through this painful journey. Yesterday, as I celebrated the gift that 2014 was for me health-wise, I wrote a post about one example of God’s grace that is particularly close to my heart. Here’s a link if you’d like to check it out:
http://inspiredencouraged.wordpress.com/2015/01/01/the-gift-of-2014/
The Wolfs’ story further encourages me that God can take the worst of circumstances and bring incredible good and beauty from them. Thanks again for introducing me to their story! Happy New Year! May 2015 overflow with blessings for you, Kevin, and your Sweet P! 🙂
Wow. Just wow. As a speech pathologist who does swallowing therapy for similar cases, this really inspired me. What an amazingly strong woman and story. God bless them and congratulations on the baby! You have made me proud to do what I do and I plan to show this story to all of my patients.
❤️ Kim
We have been busy with home projects and I had time today to watch the video of Katherine and Jay and their story. Thank you for sharing Layla! What I found so interesting when I first looked at the photos, was how young and beautiful they were in the photo with their newborn son. Then, what hit me so hard, was the true beauty of the second photo. Jay has aged, Katherine has aged and has had a stroke, and their son had grown. I saw a picture of real love, real devotion, faces that showed the signs of experience, wisdom, truth, strength, and dedication. I saw so much in the second photo and it hit me in such a way. I have never seen a photo and felt that. That photo is so very beautiful. I loved the video and I am off to watch the other. God Bless the Wolf family and their new addition!
Hi Layla, This past December I had the privilege and delight of hearing Katherine tell her story at my churhces women’s Christmas celebration. As Katherine share her testimony, she had 2000 women laughing, crying and weeping tears of joy. Thank you for sharing the amazing story of Katherine.
Just now catching up on your blog. What an amazing story! I think your next shirt should be ” Too Blessed to be Bitter” Love that line! This story certainly puts a new prospective on life!