Not Forsaken

My faith struggle is kind of like being on a roller coaster....at really high speed...one of my devotions this morning tells the story of a family's loss of two children to death, one at infancy and one during a high school football game. Last week at the prison ministry, my partner was tying my lesson together (she does that very well) and adding a bit to it with an illustration. She was talking about a death. While I was sitting there, I was thinking of not only my situation, but that of so many others I know. Losing a child in any respect feels an awful lot like the death of that child, except the pain of death is short, the pain of an alienated living child is ongoing day by day. I know parents who have grown children who have fallen into drugs, alcohol abuse, and homosexuality. Just yesterday I learned a little more about one very dear to my heart. I knew he was going down the wrong road, but not sure how far. He is a Christian kid with very precious parents, but has turned to hanging out in bars where he has met his current fiance. He has known her just a few months, she is substantially older than him, has a son from a previous relationship, and he has moved in with her. My heart sunk. I love this kid and have been praying for him and praying for him and praying for him. We have reached out to him over and over-that feels a bit futile right now. All of these that we have tried to reach that appear unreachable-the doors don't look open...and that creates a faith struggle. Where is God in this? Even when I ask that (whether out loud or not), I know He is there. This excerpt from this devotion speaks to just how I have felt....

"Shattered dreams are a part of life. Children die, husbands leave, jobs are lost, cancer tests come back positive, proposals are rejected, teenagers rebel, houses burn, terrorists attack, and the list goes on. Part of the pain is the feeling that God has forgotten us, grown deaf to our cries, or lost our address. Zion cried, "The LORD has forsaken me, the Lord has forgotten me" (Isaiah 49:14). David lamented, "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me? Why are you so far from saving me, so far from the words of my groaning? O my God, I cry out by day, but you do not answer, by night, and am not silent" (Psalm 22: 1, 2). Even Jesus called out from the cross, "My God, my God, why have You forsaken me?" (Matthew 27:46) I have cried, "Where are you, God? How could you do this to me? Have you forgotten all about me?" Then He answers, "Can a mother forget the baby at her breast and have no compassion on the child she has borne? Though she may forget, I will not forget you! See, I have engraved you on the palms of my hands" (Isaiah 49:15)."

More From the Girlfriends Today's devotion was taken from Sharon's book, Dreams of a Woman-God's Plan for Fulfilling your Dreams.

Getting outside of my world and hearing the hearts of other parents who are also struggling sure puts my life in better perspective. That is twice this week that I have heard someone else's story and understood their pain.

Lord, what can I ask for except for your will and grace? Lord, I am trusting you not only with my children, but with those of my dear friends. I lift up to you the two on my heart right now and their families. Lord, work in their lives and hearts to bring them back to you. I know your truth is in them, and your Word has been hidden in their hearts. Lord, bring that Word to their hearts today and remind them of how much you love them and how much you want an abundant life for them. Show them that they are exchanging your best for them for something of lesser value. Give their parents wisdom in knowing how to relate to them and how to encourage them in you. Remind us that you haven't forsaken us, that you know exactly where our children are and what it is going to take in their lives tho mold them into your image!