Most of you probably know my brother's story. He was born on April 12, 1982 with Down Syndrome. I am told he was the SWEETEST baby with a huge smile. Unfortunately as many children with Down Syndrome, he was also born with a severe heart defect. After two open-heart surgeries, sweet Matthew went home to be with the Lord on February 4th, 1984 just before his 2nd birthday. Even though his life was short, he had a profound impact on others. His funeral was a celebration of his life, and many came to know the Lord that day. He had a huge impact on our entire family and many of our friends. Even people like me who never got to meet him have been touched by life. My parents and older sister shared stories about him with me and never discouraged us from talking about him.
In fact in July of 1990, I accepted Jesus into my heart in large part due to my brother's life. I understood that I was a sinner. I knew that my sin separated me from God that I was on earth and that Jesus was in heaven with God. It's all pretty abstract for a four-year-old. But it really all clicked when my parents told me that Matthew was living WITH Jesus in heaven FOREVER. Immediately that solidified to me that heaven was a place and that I had the choice to spend my eternity there. That was the beginning, where I first placed my trust in Jesus and began a relationship with Him.
As you can imagine, losing Matthew was one of the toughest experiences my parents ever went through. I'm sure many of you reading this have experienced loss of some kind yourself and know first-hand how devastating it can be--the loss of a job, a grandparent, a parent, a sibling, a friend, the loss of a dream. Loss is so hard. Like I said before, last year my parents attended a Spark of Life retreat which helps people figure out how to continue living a fulfilling life after a devastating loss. The retreats are wonderful getaways that help people to process and grieve, while figuring out "what do I do now?" Spark of Life has offered these retreats at NO COST to attendees, hoping to remove the financial burden from people at such a difficult time in their life. You read that correctly. They attend a retreat in a beautiful location with wonderful food and excellent amenities, taking the best care of these people. AT NO COST. My parents had such a great experience that I could see them even helping facilitate these retreats in the future and helping others just as they have been helped throughout their journey....and all while sharing the love of Christ with them.
So that brings me to today. My husband Matt will be golfing in memory of my brother, Matthew, in a Golf Marathon to help raise funds for this amazing ministry on September 13, 2014. (Side note: I still get goose bumps thinking about how my 2 favorite Matthews were born just 2 months apart from one another in 1982. Isn't God just the best??) His goal is to play at least 100 holes of golf that day and would love for you to sponsor him per whole or with a one-time donation. Any donation you make would go directly to Spark of Life to allow them to continue providing these AMAZING grief recovery retreats for people going through such a devastating loss.
Would you prayerfully consider making a donation? Here is the link to Matt's website for more information about the Golf Marathon: http://golfmarathons.sparkoflife.org/Team/View/3401/NWA01-Matt-Kleppe
THANK YOU SO MUCH!
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