The Love of the Father

I have a family member who is going through health stuff right now that has completely changed the way she lives. Before this flare up, she was able to do all the things most of us take for granted, such as going for a run or spending a whole day at the zoo. Right now, she struggles to do the little things, like putting on a pair of socks or lifting something off the floor. It hurts me to watch her struggle on a daily basis, and I get scared, thinking that she might just give up.

I pray for my family member every day. I pray that God will see her through this time. I see the little ways God is helping out. I see how God is using this time to help us feel closer to Him. I see how struggles can be opportunities for us to communicate with Him and rely on Him.

I hate that this world has struggles, but I know that God is with us in each one that we face. One day every pain and difficulty will be gone. My family member will be free of her pain. You will be free of yours. I will be free of mine. I thank God that He has created a future for us that is something to look forward to. • Emily Acker

• Do you have struggles that feel like too much, or do you have a family member with those kinds of struggles? How can looking toward Jesus’s return—when He will raise all God’s people from the dead and we will live with Him in renewed creation—give you hope?

• God is so good that He can use even something as terrible as suffering to draw us closer to Him. Can you think of a time you felt close to God? Consider taking a moment to thank Him for this.

That is what the Scriptures mean when they say, “No eye has seen, no ear has heard, and no mind has imagined what God has prepared for those who love him.†1 Corinthians 2:9 (NLT)

Read Verses:

Luke.15.11-Luke.15.32