Have you ever been in that place? That desperate place of wanting to reach into the mind, the soul of a dear loved one? Wanting to have the magic touch to change, fix, erase, or be the voice of reason. 

The reality…we can’t. We can’t be their decision maker, healer, redeemer, superhero. We can’t tell another how to live. 

As a parent of a young child, I know the day will come when I will want to reach into her little heart and be the fix. I have experienced the ache of watching a loved one walk a long trail of pain. On the other end, I have been as well. I have been in the darkness where truth is blinded. Those that loved me wanted to take it all away in one touch, but they couldn’t.

I wish I had some grand answer to these places of desperate pain. I wish I had the cream to heal every wound. However, what I do know despite all the chaos around us, all the anguish, there is ONE who has what we ALL need. 

While I cry for my dear friend standing at the abortion clinic, and my relative in the evil grasps of depression, and another relative gripping yet another bottle of alcohol I know one thing for sure God is the only voice of reason they need to hear. God is the only healer, redeemer, and hero. 

My part. Our part looks something like this:

Pray for one another

James 5:16 Therefore, confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person has great power as it is working. ESV

Encourage one another

1 Thessalonians 5:11 Therefore encourage one another and build one another up, just as you are doing. ESV

Love one another

Romans 12:9-12 Let love be genuine. Abhor what is evil; hold fast to what is good. 10 Love one another with brotherly affection. Outdo one another in showing honor. 11 Do not be slothful in zeal, be fervent in spirit, serve the Lord. 12 Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer. ESV

Welcome one another

Romans 15:5-7  May the God of endurance and encouragement grant you to live in such harmony with one another, in accord with Christ Jesus, 6 that together you may with one voice glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. 7 Therefore welcome one another as Christ has welcomed you, for the glory of God. ESV

Kind and Forgiving toward one another

Ephesians 4:32 Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you. ESV

 

May God encourage your heart and give you wisdom on how to walk with your loved one…