Faithful God, Unfailing Grace

Musings on the only way through our fallen world.

Dementia. Cancer. Parkinsons. ALS. Heart failure. Leukemia. 

I'm watching friends of all ages battling diseases and conditions that seem such cruel robbers of health and vitality. 

Divorce. Estranged Children. Broken friendships. Betrayed trust.

Friends and family are experiencing the gamut of relational collapses and calamities, with little hope in sight.

Dreams dashed. Plans abandoned. Efforts failing. Requests denied.

So many people I care about are dealing with losses and disappointments over hopes that will never come true.

If you've read this far, you must have a strong constitution, because the realities I've just listed about this fallen world are hard to stomach. And the longer you live, the more of these you encounter more often.

How do we make it in such circumstances? How can we carry on?

The only way I know is to cling to what we know about God and about grace.

God is faithful.

Grace will never run out for us.

There are no easy answers for any of the things I've just listed. But if, in the occurrence of each, we can keep reminding ourselves that the God who is love and who has called us into his family is always faithful to his stated plan, we can continue on. He has determined to set us free from the power and presence of sin by making us like Jesus. Any or all of these things can be the very needed to move us that much closer to that goal. And in those trials we discover both God's provision of and demonstrations of his grace.

A friend with ALS has lost her ability to move and is about to lose her ability to speak. Her husband is about to lose his partner of nearly 50 years. But she posts about thankfulness, as she sees her husband and family's care for her, or her opportunities to share the gospel with medical workers through tracts, and her requests for prayer that she keeps her eyes on the Lord and not on her failing body.

A faithful God gives parting grace.

A sister who has survived years of abusive treatment speaks of the blessing of learning to trust spiritual leaders to help her when circumstances would leave her vulnerable and when others' counsel was often to go her own way. She is grateful for those who helped her along the path of faithfulness and accountability.

A faithful God gives guiding grace.

A brother I care for has experienced brokenness, loss and, at times, despair. Life was disrupted and trajectories changed. But he tells me he has also seen God sustain and bring healing as he does the work of daily repentance (what we talked about during our 40 days of fasting and prayer). He says he is learning to let go of dreams for the future to experience the joys of a very different but meaningful present.

A faithful God gives daily grace.

Where are you hurting right now? Have your dreams or desires been thwarted? Are your plans in shambles? Is your future uncertain or your past filled with shame? If you are God's son or daughter, know this.

Your God is faithful to his plans and purposes for you. He will see you through.

And every day, he will give you the grace that is needed for that day, that moment, that circumstance. And as you receive it, others will see it and marvel, just as I have been over these dear ones and the grace they have shown.