Friday: Further Thought – Covenantal Love
Daily Lesson for Friday 10th of January 2025
Read Ellen G. White, “The Privilege of Prayer,” Pages 93–104, in Steps to Christ.
Image © Stan Myers from GoodSalt.com
“Keep your wants, your joys, your sorrows, your cares, and your fears before God. You cannot burden Him; you cannot weary Him. He who numbers the hairs of your head is not indifferent to the wants of His children. ‘The Lord is very pitiful, and of tender mercy.’ James 5:11. His heart of love is touched by our sorrows and even by our utterances of them. Take to Him everything that perplexes the mind. Nothing is too great for Him to bear, for He holds up worlds, He rules over all the affairs of the universe. Nothing that in any way concerns our peace is too small for Him to notice. There is no chapter in our experience too dark for Him to read; there is no perplexity too difficult for Him to unravel. No calamity can befall the least of His children, no anxiety harass the soul, no joy cheer, no sincere prayer escape the lips, of which our heavenly Father is unobservant, or in which He takes no immediate interest. ‘He healeth the broken in heart, and bindeth up their wounds.’ Psalms 147:3. The relations between God and each soul are as distinct and full as though there were not another soul upon the earth to share His watchcare, not another soul for whom He gave His beloved Son.”—Ellen G. White, Steps to Christ, p. 100.
Discussion Questions
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We went on a camping trip with several families some years ago. One family had a couple of kids and one of them was, as we say, on the spectrum. He was a serious behavioural problem and it was disruptive to our trip. It was a month-long trip and after a couple of days we were wondering how we were going to cope. Then I noticed the care and patience the parents had when dealing with this child. They never got angry -they were consistently patient and persevering. I met the boy again recently. He will always have some of the characteristics of being on the spectrum, but the kindness, patience, and perseverance of his parents has paid off and he is a fine young man. What had started out with the potential of being a very rough trip turned out to be a lesson in love and we look back on the experience as one of our treasured memories.
Spiritually, we are on the spectrum. We are God's kids, and although created in love, we have turned out to be rebellious ratbags.
It is time to thank God for his patience and persistence in our interaction with others.
"By this shall all men know ..."