Things have been hard around here recently. Our church burned down — and now our congregation finds itself in an unexpected period of transition. Livia is rebelling against sleep and we’re rounding the corner on the third full week that her sleeping patterns are out of whack. Friends have moved away and I desperately miss their friendship, not to mention their little girls. Loved ones of friends and acquaintances have passed away in recent days. Things are kind of hard. And my heart is heavy with the emotional burden.

I’ve been reading Psalm 65, marked in my Bible with the words, “Zion Church, Summer ’97”:

Praise awaits you, O God, in Zion;
to you our vows will be fulfilled.
O you who hear prayer,
to you all men will come.
When we were overwhelmed by sins,
you forgave our transgressions.
Blessed are those you choose
and bring near to live in your courts!
We are filled with the good things of your house,
of your holy temple.

You answer us with awesome deeds
of righteousness,
O God our Savior,
the hope of all the ends of the earth…

While I long to help Livia sleep, there is little I can do to make her rest adequately. We’re in a fairly common stage and, with some wisdom and determination, we will see this phase cycle out in time. What I am facing is nothing compared to the heartache I imagine my friends, Steve and Jen Allen, are facing. Baby Amelia is terribly sick with an infection raging in her small body and I can only empathize in the slightest of ways how helpless Jen must feel to heal her little girl.

There is good news for all the heartache. We have a Savior who cares for us, who loves us so greatly he died for us. We have a God of hope, who generously gives us grace exactly when we need it. I ask God to give me patience and perseverance with Livia these days. I ask him to heal Amelia from this infection, from leukemia. Thanks, friends, for praying along with me.