Nothing Can Separate Us

I once heard a story about a teenager who was going through a really difficult time. She had become increasingly rebellious, and late one night the police arrested her for drunk driving. Her mother got the call at 2 am and drove down to the police station to bail her out. 

They didn’t say a word to each other until late the next afternoon when the mother handed her daughter a small gift-wrapped box. As the daughter opened the box, she noticed a little rock inside. The daughter rolled her eyes, and said, “Okay, Mom, what’s the rock for?” “Read the card,” her mother replied. The daughter removed the card from the envelope. As she read it, tears welled up in her eyes and ran down her cheeks. She dropped the card to the floor and embraced her mom. On the card were these simple words: “This rock is more than 200,000,000 years old. That is how long it will take before I give up on you.”

Beautiful.

All of us experience times in life when we feel unworthy; times when we know we have fallen short; times when sense we are unlovable. During those times, it helps to know that there are people in our lives who will never give up on us. We also have the promise of the scriptures that God is love (1 John 4:7). And if the life of Jesus taught us anything, it is that God loves us beyond measure, even like a father waiting to welcome the prodigal home (Luke 15).

In his letter to the Romans (8:38-39), the Apostle Paul wrote:

“For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor rulers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor anything else in all creation will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

Let us pray: We thank you, Loving God, for your steadfast love for us. As you have promised never to give us on us, may we in turn, never give up on you. Be especially near to those who need you near this day. We ask in Jesus’ name. Amen.