
The Courage to Move Forward
The angel of the Lord encamps around those who fear him, and he delivers them.—PSALM 34:7 (NIV)
Charm is deceitful, and beauty is vain, but a woman who fears the Lord is to be praised.—PROVERBS 31:30 ESV
It might seem like a stereotype, but facts show that it’s usually women who end up providing care.
Though we might have preferred that another family member take on the task, God dropped this caregiving into our laps. Lest we think ourselves unsuited to the job, let’s realize that God has honored us with this task: He trusted us enough to hand us a profound responsibility for another life.
Charm and beauty aren’t necessities on our caregiving résumé, but fearing God is certainly one of the most helpful assets a caregiver of either gender can have. Those who fear God also respect the value of life—whether it’s the life of the very young, the very old, or those who suffer from a devastating medical condition. And that is one of God’s primary qualifications for the job. Anyone who cannot respect life’s value is unlikely to give good extended care to one suffering the indignities of a serious illness or disability.
Giving good care is important—both to that loved one and to God. As God-fearers, we want to be worthy of His trust and serve Him well. Then, even if we never hear those proverbial praises from our families’ lips, we can count on hearing His “well done” in eternity.
Lord, please keep me faithful in my caregiving. I want to serve You well.

The angel of the Lord encamps around those who fear him, and he delivers them.—PSALM 34:7 (NIV)

“Truly I tell you, if anyone says to this mountain, ‘Go, throw yourself into the sea,’ and does not doubt in their heart but believes that what they say will happen, it will be done for them.”—Mark 11:23 (NIV)

“Speak, Lord, your servant is listening.”—1 Samuel 3:9 (NLT)
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