Daily Questions

Series: New New

1 Chronicles 16:11

Looking back over my childhood the one thing I remember most is sitting in the living room with my dad. I always had questions for him…questions every day…thousands of questions!

I am amazed that he never said to me, “enough with the questions!”

After I asked a question I remember him patiently thinking for a brief moment and either telling me a story or asking me a question.

Somehow every question was answered by a Bible story. He was after all a teacher and he taught adult Sunday School for years. As a matter of fact, he was the only adult a Sunday School teacher for a large class at our church. He studied scripture constantly.

So it’s no surprise that every question I had ended with a scripture or a story from scripture.

He always pointed me back to God.

1 Chronicles 16:11 says, “Seek the Lord and his strength; seek his presence continually.”

Reading this verse that was chosen weeks ago reminded me of my dad.

He always sought God and His strength.

He sought his presence continually.

Always.

In the summer of 1987 I was at youth camp in mid Missouri with a group of kids and I remember getting a message to call home. Believe it or not we didn’t have cell phones, so calling home was quite an ordeal. It took time but I eventually got the message that my dad was in the hospital and he had been diagnosed with cancer.

I was devastated.

I prayed (in a manner of speaking) begging God to heal him.

My intent was for God to heal him so he would stay on earth. God did heal him, pretty quickly. By early November of that year he was in the arms of Jesus.

That was not what I had in mind!

Until that time I had not really known grief. I learned to seek the Lord. I had not really known strength of my own and so I sought the strength of the Lord.

I was totally lost and confused. I thought God had ignored my prayer. I was 34 years old. That was many decades ago and I had much to learn.

At some point in the first five years after he went to be with Jesus I started to really rely on Jesus and accept God’s reality.

My dad was safe in the arms of Jesus.

He was healed completely.

I will see him again.

I don’t know what that will look like but I know God has made it good.

Eventually in my grief journey I started to remember all of the lessons my dad taught me growing up. I remember that every lesson pointed to Jesus.

The resolution to my grief pointed to Jesus.

I am ever so grateful that Jesus came and died so we might understand and receive.

Spiritual Practice: Turn to God

Give God your struggle and wait for the answer. I used to ask my dad how long I have to sit and wait and he would say, “for as long as it takes.” So, sit with God for as long as it takes.

In God, Deborah

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