Seek the Lord while He may be found.

“O God, you are my God; earnestly I seek you, my soul thirsts for you; my flesh faints for you, as in a dry and weary land where there is no water.” (Psalm 63:1)

There are moments in our lives when we feel like the Psalmist. Our dry souls are seeking God’s spirit without success. I first experienced such a moment when my mother died suddenly 20 years ago. I recently experienced it again.

A year ago this month, my best friend died. She was in apparent good health and soon to celebrate her 72nd birthday. But a massive heart attack ended her life suddenly. Julie and I had lived on the same block for 20 years, raised children the same ages, walked long walks with our dogs and always made each other laugh. She was an artist and intellectual; she made beautiful gifts of sculpture and art for me. Even when we moved apart after our families were grown, we visited and had regular phone conversations. Julie was the first person I called when my mother died. She was more than a sister. Her death threw me into a downward spiral. My grief was uncontrollable; I became very angry at God, and I even managed to throw my back out which made everything seem even worse. 

During this time I called out to God but heard no answer. I tried to pray but at times I felt God was not there. Spring came and the world began to bloom all around me. Summer came and reminded me of God’s faithfulness in all seasons. There was no magic moment when I felt a release from grief, but God’s presence became real to me again. I realized what God, through Jesus, had felt in the simple words after Lazarus’ death, “Jesus wept.” And I realized that grief is the companion of love, If we love we will experience grief. But God is always present and waiting for us to accept his gift of spiritual grace. 

Prayer:

Dear Lord, Thank you for standing beside us when we feel alone. Thank you for your steadfast and eternal love that transcends all earthly love. And thank you for forgiving our lack of faith when we are in a dry and weary land. Amen

This devotion was written by a member of our congregation and read by Bernice Howard.

Grace for All is a daily devotional podcast produced by the members of the congregation of First United Methodist Church in Maryville, Tennessee. With these devotionals, we want to remind listeners on a daily basis of the love and grace that God extends to all human beings, no matter their location, status, or condition in life.

If you would like to respond to these devotionals in any way, we would enjoy hearing from you. Our email address is: podcasts@1stchurch.org.

First United Methodist Church is a lively, spirit-filled congregation whose goal is to spread the message of love and grace into our community and throughout the world. We are located on the web at https://1stchurch.org/.