Luke 12: 51-53
“Suppose ye that I am come to give peace on earth? I tell you, Nay; but rather division: For from henceforth there shall be five in one house divided, three against two, and two against three. The father shall be divided against the son, and the son against the father; the mother against the daughter, and the daughter against the mother; the mother in law against her daughter in law, and the daughter in law against her mother in law.”
The Lord brings me back to this passage of Scripture frequently. When I am tempted to have a pity party because many in my Jewish family have forsaken me as “meshugana” (crazy in Yiddish) or even worse – a traitor to our people; His words bring me back to truth. Loving Jesus causes problems in families. But I would certainly rather have problems with my relatives, than be blind to the truth – that Jesus is the Messiah of the whole world, and that includes the Jews.
My Granddaughter
3000 miles away, I have an adorable granddaughter (my only granddaughter). I see her on skype which is great. There is one huge problem, aside from the distance between us. Her dad, my oldest, decided that what he believed as a teen is no longer what he believes as an adult (he is a doctor of astrophysics). My granddaughter’s parents are bringing her up as an atheist and are very wary of having her around me.
I believe that they don’t want her to hear the name of Jesus. They want to shield her from what they consider to be “nonsense” so that she will grow up to be a good atheist and hopefully a scientist. My son’s wife is also a scientist and has made it clear to me how she feels about people who believe in Jesus and Word of God.
Jesus is in control
The other night, the Lord reminded me of the fact that He had His hand on me from a very young age. I was constantly searching to find out the truth about this man who was never discussed in the synagogue – except to tell us that his disciples stole His body from the tomb, so that the world would believe that He was raised from the dead. That’s it. That’s all we learned about Him.
But that did not dissuade me from my quest to know who this man was. It consumed me. I know that it had to be God’s hand on me. Why else would I be so preoccupied with this?
My prayers for my granddaughter
When I pray for her, and for her father and mother, I ask God to place that hunger in her heart to know who Jesus really is. I pray that the Lord would bring the people into her life who love Him and will share with her all about His love, and what He did for her and the whole world. I find that when I pray these prayers for her, God takes away the fretting and the worry. He is telling me that “He has this.”
Nothing is too difficult for Jesus
My granddaughter is in daycare. I even find myself praying for the people who care for her. She is very loved in her daycare, and I believe that there is a person, or maybe more than just one, who belongs to the Lord amongst her care givers. God knows what He is doing. He hears my prayers for her. He is faithful.
I have been told not to send a Bible or anything about the Lord. I must respect their wishes. But God hears my heart, and He loves this precious child more than I do.
Do you have a situation like this in your family?
Do you have someone for whom your heart breaks? Do you want them to know about the Lord Jesus Christ and His love for them? Give it over to Him. There truly is nothing that is too difficult for Him!
“And this is the confidence that we have in him, that, if we ask any thing according to his will, he heareth us: And if we know that he hear us, whatsoever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we desired of him” (1 John 5: 14-15)
This Scripture says that our prayers are heard when we ask “according to His will.” What is more according to His will, than the soul of a person we love to know Him? He delights in these prayers!
So, I will see my precious granddaughter in June. My son has a conference in Baltimore. They are staying in a hotel. I am not fretting. I am trusting God to be God. I am thankful that I will be able to see her at all. I will leave the rest to Him.
After all, He is God and I am not.
MARANATHA