A circle of friends is suffering. One tragically lost her daughter. Two are struggling with the murder of their brother – something straight out of a Dateline murder mystery. Another is battling for her life with a recurrence of cancer. We grieve together, but only God can comfort their hearts. Some in our circle don’t know God. Like the people in Athens who had an altar to an Unknown God (Acts 17), they want to believe God is for them, but they just don’t know. Paul argued for God as our Creator and Sustainer and Savior. He said, “His purpose was for the nations to seek after God and perhaps feel their way toward him and find him–though he is not far from any one of us.” I want to help my friends feel their way through this dark time and find God. He is not far from any of us.
Our suffering friends need to know the Unknown God who is longing to be their Sustainer and Savior. Like Paul in Athens, we need to find common ground and meet them where they are. Although I mention God nearly every time our group is together, next week will be different. The sadness will be overwhelming. The tears will flow and the sympathetic words will fly. But the Word that needs to fly into their broken hearts will come from the Lord. I think you have friends that desperately need Him, too. I’ll pray for you and please pray for me as we reach out with the love of God. We can rejoice together that He is not far away from them. And He is not far away from us; He is so close He will give us the words our friends need to hear. Praying with you, Tracy