Scott MacIntyre learned to play piano by ear when he was three years old, graduated Summa Cum Laude from Arizona State University at age nineteen, and at twenty-three was a Top Ten finalist in Season Eight of American Idol. However, his journey in life has been far from easy. Scott, who has been blind since birth, is also a two-time kidney transplant recipient.

Through both good and bad, Scott has continued to rely on his faith. And, now, he and his wife, Christina, who have two children, share a common vision of presenting the love of God through their television and media ministry, Enduring Hope.

 

Scott, when we last spoke in 2014, you had just released Lighthouse. A lot has happened since that time. Your television special, Enduring Hope, recently passed the one million viewer mark. Please tell us about it and what inspired it.

Thanks for having us back! Christina and I love helping people find hope in the midst of hardship, and our Enduring Hope TV Special brings music, testimony, and Scripture all together in order to do that. We see a lot of people hurting around the world, and this project has taken our music and story to places we couldn’t go otherwise, especially these past few years when many people have been isolated. The title really gets to the heart of the gospel – the hope we can have in Christ endures through any and all adversity, because we know God is good, and we know he is in control.

Your life story defines hope. Your single, Believe Again, recorded with Rap artist Mr. S. The Catechist and released earlier this year tackles the struggle of doubt. What was the inspiration for it?

Over the past few years, I’ve witnessed a number of prominent Christian figures renounce their faith and walk away from God, some more definitively than others. I’m sure you can think of a few… It always saddens me, especially because in a lot of cases I think the questions these individuals are asking and using to justify walking away are questions pastors and theologians have been wrestling with for years, and all have satisfactory answers if we’re willing to humble ourselves before God. The song is basically an open letter, calling those who have walked away to believe again and come back to Jesus. I think Mr. S. says it so well in the second verse – either you trust or you don’t, give up on God or have hope.

Christina, the television special—and your Enduring Hope podcast— details your journey with Scott. How did the two of you meet? When did you first know you wanted to spend a lifetime with him?

We actually met in 2003 in a church summer camp production of the classic musical “The Music Man,” when we were 14 and 17! We were friends for about 6 years before we started dating. I am so grateful we had that friendship as a foundation for our relationship! God let me know pretty early on that we were meant for each other, so I knew when we headed out on our first date (to Disneyland!) that we would get married. But I didn’t share that with Scott until much later! We’ve been married almost 12 years and God has given us two children: our son Christian, born in 2016, and our daughter Stella, born in 2020!

Scott, stories and/or parables are an integral part of both the Old and New Testaments. Is there a Bible story, parable, or passage that has been particularly important to you and/or describes your personal journey of faith?

The account in John 9 comes to mind, when Jesus’s disciples ask whether the blind man or his parents are responsible for his blindness. Jesus’s answer is so interesting. Jesus says the man was born blind so that the works of God might be displayed. Our friend, Dr. Darryl DelHousaye, who’s a guest on the TV Special, puts it so well: the glory of God can be seen in the ending of the suffering – the healing – but it can also be seen during the suffering, before the healing. It’s hard for me to completely wish away my blindness, because I’ve seen God use it to touch so many lives.

Christina, is there a Bible story, parable, or passage that has been particularly important to you and/or describes your personal journey of faith?

I was blessed to be raised in a Christian home and accept the Lord at a young age. God has really used trials in my life to bring me closer to him, particularly when Scott and I went through his second kidney transplant together as a young married couple. One verse that has really been helpful for me during difficult times is James 1:2-4: “Consider it all joy, my brethren, when you encounter various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance. And let endurance have its perfect result, so that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.”

Thank you, Scott and Christina! May God continue to bless your work and your life together. It’s great to have you back at Divine Detour.

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For more information about Enduring Hope the television special and the podcast, visit Scott’s website and follow him on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.