Remarkable

re·mark·a·ble: (adj) notably or conspicuously unusual; extraordinary

I love the remarkable.

Remarkable is the reason the story of Steve Jobs captivates me like it does. There are hundreds of computer companies that make products like Apple does, but the passion for excellence and the attention to detail that went into creating my iPhone astounds me every time I use it.

It’s the reason I love going to Starbucks. Not just for the cup of coffee, but for that special moment when a barista will give me a free cup of coffee for no reason at all. I love that.

When I worked at Chick-fil-a, I picked up on something in the language of our store managers that captivated me. They truly saw the potential of making every customer experience worthy of remark.

Remarkable things are worth talking about. The moments that you weren’t expecting make life a little more wonderful.

The people that are a little different from anyone you’ve ever met.
The words in a song that seem to make their way down into the very core of your being.
The scene in a movie that captivates your emotions and makes you forget you were even watching a screen.

I want to spend my life in pursuit of the remarkable.

When it comes to this movement, my dream is that everything we do through The Hope Design would be deemed as remarkable.

It would be remarkable for a girl to come to a gathering not knowing anyone… only to leave having met an older girl who reached out to her, genuinely glad to have met her.

It would be remarkable to see a gathering of passionate college students who love Jesus take place on a Friday night in the heart of our campus.

It would be remarkable to be known on campus for the way we love people, not in words of hatred we shout through a megaphone.

It would be remarkable for a vision to love, honor, and serve our friends birth out of the hearts of a few bold students on campus.

It would be remarkable to see hundreds of people unite under a banner far greater than any one person, church, or campus ministry… The banner of Jesus.

It would be remarkable to see a few radical students lay their reputations on the line in hopes that God might use them to be a part of writing a far grander story.

It would be remarkable if the love of God created a seismic shift in the atmosphere of our university.

At the core of all that we do, we desire to be remarkable because God deserves it. He is the only thing truly worthy of remark. He is the reason we have the hope that we do. And He is the one that changes hearts… not us.

So our prayer is that God would use the faith of a few crazy students to make His name known to every single person that walks the grounds of this university.

In the end, we’re here to make it more about Jesus and less about us.

Because Jesus is remarkable.

“Look at the nations and watch— 
and be utterly amazed. 
For I am going to do something in your days 
that you would not believe, 
even if you were told.”
- Habakkuk 1:5