Saturday 10 August 2013

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Mere Presence is Good Enough

My message and my preaching were not with wise and persuasive words, but with a demonstration of the Spirit’s power, so that your faith might not rest on human wisdom, but on God’s power.
(1 Corinthians 2:4-5)

I phone JN from afar, from Denmark. Sometimes I don't know what to say and I don't have good advice to give. Does it help at all? Being long distance, I don't have the pulse on things. Is it at all possible to nurture a relationship? Am I attempting the crazy and the impossible? Am I wasting my time? Will I be giving up half of my job to pursue something which is futile? But JN says, "姑姑, please call me every week."

God taught me through this writing, "Loving a Child Through the Challenges of Life," that mere presence is good enough. I don't need to do more.

God is saying, "My child, you don't need to do more. All you need to do is to faithfully call. You don't need words, eloquence or wisdom. Just faithfully call JN. The work is mine, and the glory is mine. Your mere presence to JN is the weekly call."

I now have a deeper and personal understanding of 1 Corinthians 2:4-5 and 1 Corinthians 1:17.  I don't need to have the right words. The work is God, the work is the Holy Spirit. I don't need to take the burden. I just need to set aside time, put aside what I am doing and faithfully phone JN. The presence. That's the love I need to show. That's good enough.

For Christ did not send me to baptize, but to preach the gospel—not with wisdom and eloquence, lest the cross of Christ be emptied of its power.
(1 Corinthians 1:17)

When people say that I am attempting the crazy, and wasting my time. Let them laugh. I take courage. I no longer feel stupid, I no longer feel naive in attempting such parenting from afar. My heart is flooded with a quiet assurance. I may not succeed, but love cannot be measured by success. No matter how JN turns out in his adulthood, I will love him as best as I can as God enables me.
 
Thank you, God. I know my decision is the right one. (And I thank my Significant Other for assuring me of this decision and making this decision together as a family). When I feel discouraged, I will turn to this journal and this special moment with God, that I have jotted down with tears and gratefulness.
 
Jesus looked at them and said, “With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.”
(Matthew 19:26)

1 comment:

  1. I feel edified reading your thoughts & revelations-always. Amen, it's not by our might, not by power but by His spirit. It's not about our strengths, it's about Him working through & for us. Thank you for the reminder! :)

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