Today brought about a new battery of tests and consults for our Ruth Truth.

And as I was praying over it last night, I realized that we really have no idea what to expect. But we want to expect a miracle. 

We’ve prepared ourselves for bad news, but we’re praying for the best news. 

We know that with a word, our Lord Jesus can heal our little daughter. How many fathers came to Him in the Gospels earnestly seeking just this for their children? Yet I recognize that with all my access on this side of the cross to my Lord, I have not even been half as earnest as those men. So like the father in Mark 9, I cry out, “I believe! Help my unbelief!”

Yet, even while praying for a miracle from the Lord, He reminded me that His purposes are highest and best. 

Isaiah 55:8-9

In our limited, short-term view, we think a miracle is the best possible outcome, but could it be that God may have even greater outcomes to work out through the absence of the miracle we so desire? And if that is so, do we desire His will more than our own?

The LORD is a Redeemer. He could have ordained that the paradise He created would have remained perfect. That His image-bearers wouldn’t have rebelled against Him. That all creation wouldn’t experience the groans it does now. But He didn’t. He didn’t so that He could show His redeeming power. He didn’t so that we might know more fully his mercy and grace. For there is no need for mercy and grace in a perfect paradise. There is no redeeming an unfallen world. But God knew that a fallen world redeemed would bring Him more glory, and those who love Him more good, than one which never knew the depths of His love. 

Yes, it’s not supposed to be like this. But God will make it beautiful—through Jesus Christ and the cross. Our family wouldn’t have chosen this, but the Good Shepherd has brought us to a place where we’re thankful for the hardship. We have been challenged by the difficulties that our daughter faces, but the Good Shepherd has brought us to a place where we are able to receive it all as blessing.

O, the LORD has done a great work in my heart already. It is full! I am so thankful for Ruth Truth and the fearful and wonderful way our Heavenly Father has made her. I wouldn't ask for it to be any other way. My trust is in the LORD. Through Jesus Christ, our circumstances, and ultimately our souls, are redeemed. He is our Redeemer.

There is a Redeemer by Keith Green