The Outcome of Faith

A Reflection on the Second Reading for Sunday, April 16th, 2023:
Divine Mercy Sunday

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1 Peter
1.3-9 

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! By his great mercy he has given us a new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead: a birth into an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you, who are being protected by the power of God through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.

In this you rejoice, even if now for a little while you have had to suffer various trials, so that the genuineness of your faith — being more precious than gold that, though perishable, is tested by fire — may be found to result in praise and glory and honour when Jesus Christ is revealed.

Although you have not seen him, you love him; and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him and rejoice with an indescribable and glorious joy, for you are receiving the outcome of your faith, the salvation of your souls.

“I’m so glad … we have heaven to wait for.” — Amber VanVickle
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Last year, my women’s group watched a series by Fr. Dave Pivonka called Metanoia. I highly recommend it. The cinematography is a feast for the eyes, and the content food for the soul. The series focuses on how we can experience metanoia, which is a Greek term for spiritual conversion or transformation of the heart. 

On this Divine Mercy Sunday, the last day of the Octave of Easter, it’s both strange and fitting to highlight a story from the series that involves significant suffering but that also embodies the “indescribable and glorious joy” referred to in the Second Reading.

Dave and Amber VanVickle are parents of five children, two of whom have significant special needs. Prior to parenthood, Dave and Amber could have been described as a fervent, devoted Catholic couple; he was a full-time evangelist, and she (having grown up in a Catholic family) identified as never having left the faith. After their second child was born with cerebral palsy, another child endured a stroke. Then, their fifth child was born with both spina bifida and a genetic disorder. 

For the series, Dave and Amber sat down with Fr. Dave to describe how their faith was challenged during these difficult times.​¹ Ultimately, after repeatedly asking and waiting for healing miracles that never came, upon the birth of their fifth child Amber found herself “being bowed low,” admitting to God that “she knew nothing” and begging Him to rebuild her faith. Prior to his son’s cerebral palsy diagnosis, Dave would have “described his familial situation as a tragedy,” but he has since realized that it was the first time he had “ever experienced the cross.”

Dave and Amber’s faith deepened as they worked through those daily crosses, but there was more to come. Shortly after their interview with Fr. Dave, Amber was diagnosed with cancer. Despite her valiant efforts, and with complete surrender to God’s will, Amber passed away on February 23, 2023. May she rest in peace.²

In the words of the Second Reading, even if “for a little while” Amber had to “suffer various trials” so that her faith was “tested by fire,” she is now truly receiving “the outcome of her faith, the salvation of her soul.” And what beautiful faith blossomed from her wrestling with God and circumstance! Her surrender to God’s will is a powerful witness. Thousands have been touched by the joy and hope with which she and Dave carried their crosses and the certainty with which they looked forward to eternity. As a parent of five children, some with lesser disabilities and medical crosses, I am deeply moved by the VanVickle family’s hard-earned and genuine faith — a diamond formed under pressure, “more precious than gold.”

As we celebrate Divine Mercy Sunday, may we realize that there is no joy without the cross, no peace without preceding pain. But when the strife ends, what gift awaits: “an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled and unfading, kept in heaven.” We are “protected by the power of God through faith for a salvation to be revealed in the last time.” In this, we rejoice!

He is who He said He was. And that is risen, indeed. 

“[W]e’re so happy because we get to spend our eternity with Him. The empty tomb is one of the greatest things you could ever see in your life.” — Dave VanVickle


¹ I encourage you to watch the interview here. The full Metanoia series can be accessed through your parish’s subscription to formed.org. Amber’s writings can be found here and here.
² Please pray for Dave and his children as they mourn the loss of Amber, wife and mother, while continuing to attend to the care needs in their home.



Michelynne Gomez
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