His Way Is Perfect: A Song of Hope Through Sorrow

His Way Is Perfect: A Song of Hope Through Sorrow

Nov. 6, 2026

Host: Dr. Isaac Crockett

Guest: Dave Kistler

Note: This transcript is taken from a Stand in the Gap Today program aired on 11/6/26 To listen to the podcast, click HERE

Disclaimer: While reasonable efforts have been made to provide an accurate transcription, the following is a representation of a mechanical transcription and as such, may not be a word for word transcript. Please listen to the audio version for any questions concerning the following dialogue.

Isaac Crockett:

It’s incredible, but Thanksgiving and Christmas are fast approaching. I just finished a conversation with our producer, Tim, talking about our Thanksgiving schedule. And as we get closer to Thanksgiving and of course to Christmas and the special days that go along with that, many families are looking forward to getting together as a family. But for many of us as well, the holidays are difficult because of the empty chair, as they call it, in the room, remembering the loved ones who are no longer with us. And a couple of verses that I’ve used in my own life, missing my father and other ones that I’ve lost is one Thessalonians 4:13, where we find out from Paul that we do not sorrow as those with no hope. We don’t do that because we have hope. Two Corinthians chapter one, Paul tells the church at Corinth that we have a father, that God is our father of all mercies and comfort, of all comfort.

And he goes on and he explains that God comforts us even in our tribulations so that we can then take that comfort and help comfort others. And so we’re doing God’s work by taking what we’ve learned in times of hardship and helping others. And that’s what I want us to do today. We’re going to talk about a remarkable testimony of how God is bringing comfort in extremely unexpected door of opportunity through the heartbreak of a family, of a person that you know very well, those of you who are regular listeners to Stand in the Gap. Our guest today is a very well known voice to you, Dr. Dave Kistler, evangelist, Dr. Dave Kistler, who leads Hope to the Hill and Hope Ministries. Dave, thank you so much for taking the time to be on the program with us again today.

Dave Kistler:

Isaac, it is always a delight to be on with you, and especially I’m looking forward to talking about this topic.

Isaac Crockett:

Well, our title is His Way is Perfect, which is actually a song, Dave, that your wife Betsy wrote. It’s a song of hope through sorrow. And I think, again, most of you who are longtime listeners will remember the tragic plane crash that took place in July of 2024 that claimed the lives of Dave and Betsy’s son Nathan and their daughter-in-law and some other friends and family members on that plane crash. And we’re going to talk about how God is still working, how Nathan’s ministry and Amber’s ministries are growing and producing fruit, though they are dead, yet they live. Obviously we know they’re live in Christ, but their ministries are going forward. But Dave, before we get into all of that, right now, the news of this week, there’s a lot of talk about another plane crash, a Learjet that crashed. And I just wanted to pick your brain a little bit about that, what you’ve seen in that, as well as I believe that you know the pilot’s pastor quite well.

Could you just talk to us a little bit about that and maybe say some words of comfort to that family that must be walking through just overwhelming grief at this moment?

Dave Kistler:

Yeah, Isaac, on Sunday afternoon, the plane that crashed down in West Palm Beach area not far from Mar-a-Lago was piloted by a gentleman named Jeff Gregory. I did not know Jeff, but he actually attended a church in Pennsylvania, a church that’s got a very stellar reputation. The pastor of that church is a gentleman that I know. And I will say this, Isaac, that pilot actually attended the same college that you and I attended. And so there’s a lot of intersections and a lot of things that overlap between his life, which was a stellarly lived life and our lives. The young lady that was the co-pilot was only 20 years old. I did not know anything really about her, really didn’t know anything about Jeff the pilot, except that what I’ve heard has been that he just lived his life for Jesus Christ in a powerful way.

Isaac, one of the most moving and probably one of the greatest legacies that Jeff left was you could hear on some of the video as the co-pilot, the 20-year-old young lady who was herself a very accomplished. She’s talking to the radio control tower and in the background you can hear Jeff reciting the Lord’s prayer. And what a legacy to leave knowing that they were going to perish. And we can relate, my wife and I can relate. My heart broke for every one of the family members of the nine on that airplane that perished. We have walked that road. We know what they’re going through. The stages of grief are real, but if I could encourage them, not that they need my encouragement, but if I could encourage them, cling hard to the Lord and I will say to them what has been true for us, the Lord will carry them through this like he’s carried us through.

We have not walked through this. We have been carried through this by the Lord and I’m so grateful for that. And the opportunities for his name to be lifted up, the name of the Lord Jesus to be exalted are going to be myriad in the days ahead.

Isaac Crockett:

Well, again, this is another object lesson of two Corinthians chapter one of that comfort that we received from God and sharing it. So many stories from Nathan and Amber’s home going, but the impression that Nathan made in his life that has continued in his death on Capitol Hill in particular where he directed your hope to the hill. What has it meant to you to hear so many stories from politicians and staffers and people all over the world, but especially in our capital DC about Nathan and the legacy that he continues to have even after the Lord has called him home?

Dave Kistler:

Well, Isaac, thank you for asking this and it’s an honor to share about it. What’s amazing to me is that Nathan got so close, he and Amber, but both of them got so close to members of Congress that those members of Congress now have become dear friends of ours. Many of them I knew, some of them I did not, but Nathan got to know them very, very well. And in my phone right now, Isaac, I’ve got the personal cell phone numbers of many of the members of Congress that we watch on the news every single day. They love Nathan, they loved Amber, Nathan and Amber love them. And I can pick up my phone as I did this past week going into the elections and certainly afterwards, I was communicating with a number of the members of Congress and we just talk back and forth like the friends that we are.

But all of that is possible because of the way Nathan was used of God to get into their lives and into their hearts. And so the impact is great, greater maybe now in some ways, even than it was while they were walking on this earth. Their home going is bringing with it more open doors of opportunity, certainly on Capitol Hill. And I could talk for an hour about specifics and I’m not going to do that, but it’s well beyond Capitol Hill, Isaac. And that is some of what we’re going to talk about a little bit later. But as it was said of that one in the Old Testament, he being dead yet speaketh, well, that’s certainly true even for God’s saints today if they live their life to honor and glorify their savior.

Isaac Crockett:

Dave, so many times I find so much encouragement from the hymns that we sing. And when you find out the background to those hidden stories, it makes those words even more precious. And you’ve had that happen in your life with your own wife who’s written some beautiful songs and beautiful music. And there’s a song that I have sung for years, for decades that she wrote. And that’s kind of what I’m using for the title of the program today, His Way is Perfect. And what you’re talking about right there fits that song and the story of how it came to be out of a tragedy and how it has then ministered to you and your family and many, many, many others through the home going of Nathan and Amber. And so I think that’s kind of the heart of the story that we want to look at and hear from you what God has done and what he’s doing.

We have so much to talk about with this. If you’re listening right now, please text your friends to listen to this program, share the archives of this. You are going to be so blessed and so encouraged from what Dave’s story is for us today of what God is doing in his life. We’ll be right back on Stand in the Gap.

Well, welcome back to the program. I’m Isaac Crockett and we’re listening to the story of Dave Kistler tell us what God has been doing in not just his life, but in lives all over the world through the impact of his son, Nathan and his daughter-in-law, Amber. And so we’re just talking to Dave and he’s telling us some incredible things. And Dave, what we really want to talk about is the music part in the song. So much of this kind of goes back several decades ago, 30 years ago when your wife and again, your whole family is so musical. As a traveling evangelist, music was a big part. Even Nathan and Amber, when their plane went down, they were on their way to the Gaither homecoming cruise. And so your whole family is not just talented with music, but has developed it, their gifts for the Lord.

And it starts with your wife, Betsy, who has just a world-class education and then an incredible experience of not just performing music, but putting it together, arranging and writing music and songs. And this song that she wrote over 30 years ago, His Way is Perfect, following the tragic death of a boy who was Nathan’s friend, pastor friends connected to you, that has comforted many people over the years. And I’ve sung and used that song. And even in the last few years, I’ve used it in the story, the original story of why Betsy wrote that to comfort those friends. But it’s taken on, of course, a new meeting since July 2024 when Nathan, when his plane went down. And you even developed a sympathy card where you would send out this card and it included a recording of the song His Way is Perfect. And it was sung by your son Nathan with piano accompaniment.

Let’s start there because this whole story is just so incredible, so deep. But can you start there and tell us when you realized that it was Nathan’s voice preserved on CD singing Betsy’s song that had been written to comfort another family going through a similar situation?

Dave Kistler:

Well, thank you, Isaac. Yeah, 35 years ago, Betsy wrote the song for some friends of ours in Tennessee whose little three-year-old son, same age as Nathan at the time. They had been buddies and had played together and he was tragically killed in a very, very unique set of circumstances out on the country road in a very rural community. We had eaten in that family’s home many, many times, shared meals together. Children had played and we found out what happened. Betsy said, “I need to do something. We need to do something. What do you do?” Well, the best thing we felt like could be done was for her to write a song in their honor and that song was His Way is Perfect. That was 35 years ago. Little did we know then that 35 years later, we would need that song personally. And we recorded the song not long after she wrote it and someone else sang it.

It was a young lady with a beautiful voice that was in our church that sang it on the recording. And then about eight or nine years ago, Isaac, we produced that sympathy card to which you referred for people that are going through a difficult time, maybe loss of a loved one. And we had Nathan sing the song on a CD. My wife accompanied him on the piano and we did it with just some professional equipment here at our house around our grand piano and then put that, inserted it into the card, attached in the card and we’d hand it out to people out in public. We would meet someone, we just kept them with us or would mail them out to people and make them available for folks in churches to be able to give to someone they knew that was going through a hard time.

But because it was eight or nine years ago when we did that, we forgot that we had Nathan sing that on the CD that was going to go in the sympathy card. Well, back in January, we were going through some things here at the house. We found one of those sympathy cards that we still had and we put the CD in trying to remember who did we have sing it and Nathan’s voice came up. And Isaac, as you can imagine, it was a very cheerful time for my wife and I, but yet a joyful time. And she said to me, “If we ever make another recording, it would be great if we could put this song on there with Nathan singing it.” And we’ve been talking about doing some type of a recording that would tell the story of where God’s brought us over the last two and a half years.

And so we were just conversing about that, but had forgotten that he sung the song and that really served as the starting point for what has happened over the last three months, which Isaac, as you have already said, has just been God ordained through and through.

Isaac Crockett:

Dave, I actually have goosebumps as you’re telling this story and maybe partly because I know some of the rest of the story here, but so here you all are finding his voice again, hearing him so appropriately singing that song. Now, fast forward a little bit, Betsy, she stays so busy with her music work and her music work at the church as well. And she was working on a patriotic musical arrangement. She reached out to some Christian music legacy, a person who’s kind of a legacy musician of Christian music, David Clydesdale. Many of you will recognize that name. I think everybody would recognize the different music that he’s been involved in, award-winning Christian composer and arranger working on a patriotic song of his trying to get it to fit for piano parts and things. Can you tell us through that chance encounter, so to speak, of her contacting him about that, can you tell us about the connection that developed and how David then learned about Nathan and Amber and how now, just tell us about the extraordinary musical project now that has come from this.

Dave Kistler:

I’d be delighted to, Isaac. Yeah, Betsy reached out to David. She’s played his arrangements for years. In fact, at the memorial here in North Carolina for Nathan and Amber, Betsy felt like as a tribute to Nathan and to Amber, she wanted to play and she actually played one of David’s arrangements of Great is Thy  Faithfulness. And Isaac, you were there and I thank you so much for coming and being at that memorial. And so you heard her play it. It was beautiful. So she’d played his arrangements for 30 years. So she’s wanting to do a four piano arrangement of America the Beautiful for America’s 250th birthday. And contact was made with David Clydesdale. The question was, could you write an arrangement for four pianos of America the Beautiful? He said, yes, I can. He heard Betsy’s name. He needed some additional information from her. So Betsy called him.

And in the course of that conversation, he said, now Kistler, Betsy Kistler, he didn’t really know us, but he had heard about the accident that claimed the life of Nathan and Amber and the other five precious people on the airplane. He knew about the accident. Betsy began to share with him, that was our son, that was our daughter-in-law. He then said, yes, I will be glad to do the arrangement of America the Beautiful. He listened to my wife play the piano online and got back in contact with us and just said, wow, I’d love to do a project with you, Mrs. Kistler, at some point after I write this arrangement for you and the other three pianists at your church. And little did we know, Isaac, that that would turn into what it’s turned into. And it’s just, I don’t even know how to say it.

It’s God pushed us into this. We had no choice. We didn’t go looking for it, but God was so much in it. It was abundantly evident. And so this wonderful project that we’re going to talk about is now the result.

Isaac Crockett:

He wants to do more. Tell us about this. You have somebody who’s in many ways, one of the most recognizable names of Christian music. He comes to you guys and wants Betsy to help him make some special music with a special orchestra. Can you tell us, we just have a couple minutes, but can you kind of open up the box to that and we’ll get into it more in our next segment?

Dave Kistler:

Sure. What happened is he wrote arrangements for 10 songs and songs that we picked out that tell a story from beginning to end in the way the songs are laid out and will be laid out on the project of how God’s carried us through this. He wrote all of these new fresh arrangements of these songs, many of them well known, few of them not. And then he wrote orchestral accompaniment for every one of the songs as well. And what he told us is the orchestra, I have played the orchestral parts to this, is the Prague Philharmonic Symphony in the Czech Republic. And so he said, “Would you like to come over and be there while the orchestra records their parts?” Of course, we said, “Absolutely.” And so back in September, we spent four days, five days actually in Prague listening to the Prague Philharmonic record the songs for what we believe is going to be a phenomenal musical project to bring glory to God and in honor of our son, Nathan.

Isaac Crockett:

It’s just so incredible. And as I understand, there’s also going to be a part that includes Nathan’s voice. Can you tell us maybe a little bit about that? And again, as a father, how this makes you feel seeing all this come together?

Dave Kistler:

Well, there were two songs we wanted to put on there. One of them, His Way Is Perfect, the one that we found on the CD that was in the symphony card. And then another song that is my all time favorite that Nathan ever sung and it’s called No More Night. And we were trying to figure out, can you extract Nathan’s voice off of those recordings that he made or that we made? And then we asked David Glasdale, can you write an arrangement to match his voice in the same key orchestra compliment and all of that. And through the magic of modern technology and a wonderful engineer that is part of David’s team, they were able to do that. So two of the songs on this project will actually be fresh arrangements of His Ways Perfect and No More Night with full orchestral background. Betsy will play the piano and Nathan will sing them and it’s just amazing.

So again, Isaac, he being dead, yet speaks.

Isaac Crockett:

And speaking in such a powerful way and bringing these things together, things from a tragedy with a family friend 35 years ago, and then to bring that in with your son and for it to come at such a time as this, where it is so needed in all of our lives and all of our churches, so much more to get into, but this song written for a grieving family will now be kind of turned over to the world with one of the greatest world orchestras and most recognizable world orchestras. When we come back, Dave, I want to have you tell us more about this. Tell us about this recent trip to the Czech Republic, to the Prague Philharmonic Symphony, and talk about Nathan’s voice being such a big part of this remarkable project. Again, you don’t want to miss this. In fact, I would encourage you to listen to the archive of this again, go to our website and share this testimony of what God has done and is doing with other friends.

We’re going to take a quick time out to hear from some of our partners in ministry, and then we’ll be back to hear more about what God has done in Dave’s life and in the life of many others through this. We’ll be right back.

Well, thank you so much for listening to the program today. I’m Pastor Isaac Crockett talking with evangelist Dr. Dave Kistler. And what we’re doing today is something I’ve wanted to do for quite some time. Oftentimes, before we go live on a program or right after the program finishes and we’re just talking and wrapping things up, off air, we get into conversations that are so encouraging and stories that give so much glory to God. And I often say to my fellow co-host and guest and to Tim, our producer, “Wow, I wish we could have recorded that, the part that came after the program we were recording.” So we’re talking with you, Dave, and you and I were talking, I guess it doesn’t feel that long ago, but at the end of July, we were talking, I think this was July 24th, you had just wrapped up a program and I said something to you and you said, “Well, actually,” and you started to tell some of the story.

It wasn’t as fully developed as what we’re hearing today because all of these things hadn’t fully happened yet, but they were happening. And I remember at the time just saying, “Wow, that is so miraculous, so incredible. We definitely have to talk about this on the radio sometime once more of this has happened.” And so that’s what we’re doing right now. And if you’re just tuning in, we’re talking with Dave. Much of this goes back to a beautiful song that Dave’s wife wrote 35 years ago to help another family going through the tragedy of losing their son that was the same age as Dave’s son. And now it’s of course been comforting to Dave and Betsy and their whole family and many, many others. The same song that was meant to comfort another family has comforted them. And now it’s been recorded with one of the most famous symphonies in the world and legendary musician and Christian music.

So just every part about this Dave is such a meaningful project. So let’s go into now what has happened and what remains to happen for this project to be released. So you mentioned that Dave Clydesdale, again, Christian music legend, and he comes to you and Betsy says, “I want to make this music and we want to put Nathan’s voice in it.” So you actually did then, since the last time you and I had talked about what was going to happen, you actually made it to Prague, worked on this project with David and the orchestra. I can’t imagine what kind of an extraordinary experience that must have been. Can you kind of walk us through what happened while you were there and what it was like to hear Betsy’s music being performed by this full symphony orchestra of one of the most recognizable symphonies in all of the world?

Dave Kistler:

Yeah, Isaac, it was a dream come true for my wife. Again, she had played David Clydesdale’s arrangements. And if I might just say this on behalf of David and Celeste Clydesdale, we had never met them prior to arriving in Prague. I’m talking about face-to-face. We’d never met them. Conversations had taken place on the telephone. David is a very winsome individual, as is his wife, Celeste. They’re incredibly transparent people, just love God, love people, love music and love serving the Lord and God’s church through music. But when we met in Prague, we just fell in love with these folks. They’re just amazing. We’ve become wonderful friends. But Prague is a city, Isaac, that is known for a lot of things, one of which is the burning at the stake of a man named John Huss who died for his faith. And I’d always wanted to go there myself just because of that component, but to go there for this project was something else altogether.

To sit on the floor in the room where all the Prague Philharmonic Orchestra is sitting and they’re playing music that has been arranged by David Clydesdale for you and for your wife and for this phenomenal project that God’s opened up the door for, to sit there and listen to it live on the stage is just unbelievable. And then to walk across just a few steps away into the engineering room and listen to them playing with all the other aspects of the arrangements that are done outside just what the symphony does is just a whole other level. And I just cannot say what an incredible experience it was, especially for my wife. This was musical heaven for her on every level, just from a music appreciation standpoint, the quality of the orchestra. But most of all, this project that we have bathed in prayer, asking God to use it globally to impact people for the gospel and impact people for the kingdom, you can’t really put it into words, Isaac.

It was phenomenal.

Isaac Crockett:

I’m thinking back two years ago to that memorial service at your church in North Carolina and the strength that God gave you and Betsy and your daughters at that service. It was incredible. I mean, the numbers of people packed in, it was a large building, but it didn’t feel large because it was so packed and so many people from all over that came in to be there. But hearing from you and Betsy and your daughters that day, as you weren’t sure what was going to happen, but you were trusting God even in the middle of that storm of that tragedy. And you and Betsy have been so honest and so open with this. And I think of a podcast that Betsy did around, I think it was Mother’s Day. It just touches your heart as you hear the excruciating pain of a mother who’s lost her son and daughter-in-law who was like a daughter in such a unexpected way.

And yet even before the memorial was over, I mean, even that day, there were souls that accepted Christ as savior at that service. And there was so much happening from that very day, but this has just continued to develop and continued to push forth the kingdom of heaven. But you mentioned that they were able to take Nathan’s voice, and there’s another something special with a poem that you and Betsy wrote that’s going to be part of this. But just to go back to that, that you talked about in our last segment, so they’re actually going to have Nathan’s voice is going to be on this new album that’s going to come out with some of Betsy’s arrangements and the Prague Philharmonic Symphony. Could you just kind of tell us about that again and go into any detail there? And then I want to talk about how it gets even more personal with you and Betsy and incorporating more into this.

Dave Kistler:

Yeah. The two songs that are going to have Nathan’s voice, he’s going to be singing. It is actually his voice recorded His Way’s Perfect. That was about nine years ago, No More Night. He did that himself in his own studio probably around eight to nine years ago. So it’s not AI generation of his voice at all, it’s his voice. But to extract his voice and separate it from the piano accompaniment or to extract his voice from another recorded background and just get his voice and have that alone, and then David Clydesdale write an arrangement of the song, No More Night or His Way’s Perfect for piano, and then also for the Prague Philharmonic was quite an undertaking, but he is a two-time Grammy Award-winning writer and arranger and a 26-time Dove Award-winning writer and arranger, so he’s incredibly skilled. And all of that was made possible, almost miraculously.

So these are going to be the Prague Symphony, my wife playing the piano, Nathan singing both His Way is Perfect and No More Night. And the last thing on the project’s going to be No More Night. And I’ll tell you, Isaac, I’m not looking forward to going today or next week home to heaven, but I’ve told my wife, “If I die before you do, the song I want sung at my funeral is No More Night, and I want it to be this one that will be on this project because it just speaks to everything that Heaven is and everything that Nathan and Amber are experiencing and have experienced there for the last two and a half years. It’s just amazing, Isaac. It’s amazing.

Isaac Crockett:

Well, and there’s this other personal part that you and Betsy, again, the memorial service was just so incredible, but you read a poem that you’d written for Nathan and Amber at the memorial service. Can you tell us how that is actually being incorporated into this album and what this poem meant to you to go through writing that in such a tumultuous time, but how that’s been a comfort not only to you, but to so many other people, and now it will be even compounded and multiplied even more?

Dave Kistler:

Well, David Kleisdale had heard, of course, about the accident. And of course we told him, my wife actually told him in one of the early conversations, well, that was our son where he went back and listened to Nathan’s voice and he said to us that’s world-class. That’s a world-class voice. And he was so moved by all of that. He said, “I’d like to write an original composition for the orchestra and for you, Betsy, that you would play on the recording and it would be on this project.” And so we said, “That would be wonderful. Could you write that original composition based on this poem that my wife and I wrote for the memorial service in North Carolina?” And we sent the poem over to him within five minutes he wrote back and he said, “Oh, that is beautiful. Absolutely. Absolutely.” So he’s written this beautiful poem, but he said, “My requirement now back of you guys is that on the project, you and your wife have got to read the poem.

And so there’s going to be an original composition with full Prague Philharmonic Orchestra, Betsy playing the piano, and then we will recite the poem with all that music in the background. It’s eight stanzas. I’m not going to read all eight, Isaac, but I’m going to read just the last couple of stanzas talking about the life Nathan and Amber had together as a witness for the Lord. It says this, “Their light together burning fast, its splendor all too quickly passed. And for a moment it was feared, their luminance had disappeared. But from what seemed to be for Lorne, a million other stars were born dancing brightly in the sky as if they would not ever die. A witness for a God of love from two bright lights now gone above in faithfulness, they ran their race to safely end their Lord’s embrace.” And that’s just a portion of the poem, but that’ll be on the project as well.

And it’s a privilege and an honor and it’s a God thing for all of this to be taking place.

Isaac Crockett:

Well, Dave, this is just so incredible, so amazing. And I’m so glad you’re sharing all this personal stuff that the Lord is working through with us. And as I said, you all have been kind of an open book through this whole process, but thank you for that. We’re going to take another quick time out and come back, wrap things up with some final words from Dave and some final comfort for everyone who’s grieving the loss of a loved one. We’re going to hear from our partners and we’ll be right back. Stay tuned. We’ll be right back on Stand in the Gap today.

Well, welcome back to the program. I’m Pastor Isaac Crockett talking with evangelist Dave Kistler about just so, and as you said, Dave, at the beginning of this program, we could go for hours about things, but so many open doors of opportunity through the unexpected tragedy of losing your son and daughter-in-law and other friends and family members through an unexpected, obviously unexpected plane crash. And now to take music that your wife wrote 35 years ago and now it’s coming together in this big project. Could you tell us just a little bit more about this project and the album that’s expected, this collaboration with David Clydesdale and the Prague Symphony, Philharmonic Symphony? As I understand it, your wife Betsy is headed to Nashville soon to do some piano recording and things will be getting put together, but maybe you could just give us, I know not all the details are worked out yet, but some of what comes next and what to expect come maybe this spring with the album release and some of those details.

Dave Kistler:

Yeah, Isaac, thank you for the privilege to do that. Yeah, it’s been a fascinating journey. Of course, it all started with David Clasdale writing both the piano arrangements for the 10 songs that we wanted to put on the project. And those were done first and sent over to my wife so she could begin playing through them, which I’ve had the delight to sit up at night when I’m home and listen to her practice through and play through all those arrangements. The next thing was of course, writing all the parts for the symphony for the Prague Philharmonic Orchestra. And then that was what was recorded in September in Prague while we were there. And believe it or not, Isaac, these people are consummate professionals. They recorded every one of the songs, their philharmonic orchestra parts in one day. It’s absolutely amazing to think of that, but they’re very professional, wonderful people.

And then the next thing was to add in the voices of a choir. And the Nashville singers is the choir that will be featured on each of these arrangements that will highlight Betsy, but it’ll have the orchestra and it’ll have the voices. And the final thing to go onto the project will be Betsy’s piano parts, which she will indeed starting next month, go into the studio in Nashville and record all of the piano parts. And it’ll probably be done in two different sessions, six songs the first session and then five songs, one of the final five being us just reciting the poem while the music is in the background. And of course she will play her piano part on that as well. So hopefully the project will be out in the early spring and will be available. It’s something we’re going to use in a big way on Capitol Hill and there’s a lot going on there that I can’t even share with you just yet.

But I’m just telling you, we serve an amazing God who takes the tragedies of life and turns them. If we can walk in the spirit and respond and let God have his way in our lives and not resist them. And boy, that’s a hard thing for me to say because I’d give anything to have my son back and so would Betsy and our daughter-in-law back and so would Betsy. But it’s amazing how God can turn a tragedy into a triumph when we allow him to do so.

Isaac Crockett:

Well, Dave, I know there are people listening right now who have lost loved ones and there are even parents out there or folks who have lost children or grandchildren or other friends or family members that are close to them. And this has touched a heartstring with them, I’m sure. What could you say as far as so many things, but what might be a kernel of truth of comfort that you have learned about God’s comfort? We started off by talking from Paul’s writing to the church at Thessalonia, the Thessalonicans and to the Corinthians, but that God is a God of all comfort and a God of mercy. What have you learned about God’s comfort and his ability to use, as you just described, our deepest sorrows to be able to encourage others within the church?

Dave Kistler:

Yeah, Isaac, I will say this. One of the words used in the scripture to describe the Holy Spirit is the word comforter. And you know this, the verb form is the word in the Greek language. Para means over or near, kaleto is the word that means to call or to invite. And if you played sports, which I played a lot of it, if you scored a touchdown on the football field or a basket on the basketball court, many, many times you’d go back down the field to set up on defense and you’d throw your arm around one of your teammates and you’d draw him near and you’d say, “Man, that was a great pass or that was a great catch or whatever.” And that’s a gesture of encouragement when you pull somebody near to yourself. There’s people in the body of Christ that have done that to us all through the last two and a half years.

And it’s been amazing how people have they’ve drawn near or pulled us near to them as a believer in Jesus Christ. I mean, physically sometimes even those hugs and embraces and so on. But what’s powerful about what we’ve learned is this. We have the Holy Spirit of God who is the divine comforter, the one who draws us near to himself and to the son of God, Jesus. Only the Holy Spirit does that from inside of us because he him dwells and he has pulled us close to himself. And that’s why if you know Christ, you have so much of an advantage walking through a trial, a difficulty, a hardship of this nature. Man, if you don’t know the Lord, you can come to him today. You can. You can call out to him, admit you need him. You’re a sinner and you want him to forgive your sin and be your savior, believing he died and was buried and rose again for you.

And once you’re born again and you have his Holy Spirit inside you, the comfort goes to a whole nother level. That’s why I keep referring to what we’ve gone through the last two and a half years as God carrying us through because his Holy Spirit, the divine comforter, has comforted us on the inside with a comfort that is not possible any other way.

Isaac Crockett:

Amen to that. And again, all of this is through salvation, through Jesus Christ. If you’re trying to be religious or trying to just be tough enough, that’s not what we were created for. We were created needing God and he has sent God, Emmanuel, God with us, Jesus Christ to come. And through Jesus, we have this union with him where he gives us then the comfort of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit dwells us. We’re connected to the Lord. He’s the vine. We are his branches. And what a beautiful object lesson, Dave, even with what you and Betsy are going through. I want to give you time to give any final words and to close in prayer, but even as you do that, maybe you could also just talk to maybe a person who has lost a loved one. Maybe it’s a parent who’s lost a child, but this is going to be their first year sitting around the Thanksgiving table or around the Christmas table with that empty chair.

Just anything you would have to share with them and then any final words and if time, if you could close our program in prayer.

Dave Kistler:

Yeah, Isaac, I would say this, just this very practical thing, maybe not what you though I would say, but the first Christmas after, first Thanksgiving after the accident, and we’ve done it every year and we’ll do it again this year. When we gather around the table, we put a place setting for Nathan and we put one for Amber because they were here either at Thanksgiving or Christmas. And the Thanksgiving and Christmas before the accident, they were here for both Thanksgiving and Christmas, which was very unusual. They normally split their time between our family and then Amber’s mom and dad, and justifiably so, rightly so, but they happened to be here the Christmas and the Thanksgiving prior. And so we just put a place there and we remember them not because we were close to forgetting. That’s not the point, but they’re still part of our family.

They’re just watching in heaven. And if your loved one knows the Lord, boy, what greater comfort is there than to know that they’re there in glory waiting for us to join them there. And so I would just encourage you draw close to the Lord, walk with him, especially during the holidays.

The God of heaven knows what it is to lose or to give up a son, to come to the sin cursed earth, to die by design on an old legged cross. He knows and is touched by the feelings of our infirmities, the scripture says. So we can draw close to him and receive everything we need. Doesn’t mean it’s not difficult. It is, but it means that God will pick us up and carry us through when we draw out of him. So that would be the advice I would give, I think.

Isaac Crockett:

Amen. Amen. Well, thank you, Dave, for, again, opening up your heart and your life and sharing with us. For all of you, I pray that this was an encouragement that you’ll share it with others. And until next time that you’ll stand in the gap for truth today wherever you are. Thank you for listening.