Parenting can bring a special type of fear into your life, but parents of children with special needs face unique and trying challenges in addition to the regular doubts we may face. Today’s devotion highlights some of those doubts, but more so, it highlights the strength and power of our Savior. It’s a grace to welcome Amy J. Brown, Sara Clime, and Carrie M. Holt to the farm’s table today…

Guest Post by Amy J. Brown, Sara Clime, and Carrie M. Holt

Have you ever felt like you’ve worn out your welcome with God, that he gets tired of you asking him for strength, courage, or energy?

When I began to explore the source, I found that my anxiety was rooted in the lie that we had finally worn God out, that he was tired of repeatedly healing our son after every surgery, every medical crisis.

Several years ago, my son’s shunt (a device in the brain that drains excess fluid the brain produces) wasn’t draining correctly, and his abdomen became enlarged. To ensure there wasn’t an infection that could travel to his brain, we sat in the hospital for two weeks as he received antibiotics and had the fluid drained.

By this time in our special needs journey, our son’s surgery count was reaching the mid-forties, and at the end of those two weeks, he would require surgery again to put the shunt back inside his body. During that time, I struggled with fear over our son’s survival.

The fear seemed irrational. The current crisis wasn’t that critical.

He talked, laughed, ate, and got bored from sitting in a hospital bed. What was the source of my fear?

When I began to explore the source, I found that my anxiety was rooted in the lie that we had finally worn God out, that he was tired of repeatedly healing our son after every surgery, every medical crisis.

Fear is often rooted in lies. I believed the lie that God was getting tired of me, our prayers, and healing our child. I forgot about who he is and the truth of his character.

The truth is that God doesn’t get tired. “Have you not heard? The Lord is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He will not grow tired or weary, and his understanding no one can fathom” (Isa. 40:28).

God understands your human heart and the difficulties of your circumstances. He doesn’t grow weary of you coming to him.

Jesus told the parable of the persistent widow because he wanted to show us how we should always pray and not give up. My favorite version says so we won’t “lose heart” (Luke 18:1 ESV). God doesn’t get tired of us coming to him with our problems. So don’t lose heart; keep going to him in prayer.

God doesn’t get tired of us coming to him with our problems. So don’t lose heart; keep going to him in prayer.

Fear is also entrenched in the lie that we can control tomorrow.

Jesus tells us in Matthew that we’re not to worry about our lives, that even the birds of the air are taken care of, and that we have more value than they do. “Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life?” (Matt. 6:27).

Trusting God means leaving tomorrow in his hands, believing that he knows what we need and will provide it.

George Müller, who started several orphanages in Bristol, England, in the nineteenth century, was a man of great faith. He kept a daily journal of his requests and how God answered each one. He did not believe in fundraising for his orphanage but prayed daily for God to provide.

One morning three hundred children sat down to eat, but there wasn’t any food. George prayed and thanked God for what he would provide. Suddenly, there was a knock at the door. A baker couldn’t sleep the night before and thought the orphanage would need bread, so he had gotten up at 2 a.m. and baked it for them.

Just as the children enjoyed the bread, a milkman’s cart broke down. He needed to lighten his load to fix the wheel, so he donated the milk to the children. Maybe you require not daily bread but strength, sleep, soul rest, or a break. Ask him for what you need.

Fear can take root when we take our eyes off Jesus.

He may not prevent the storms from coming, but he wants to walk through them with us.

My favorite story is when the disciples are in the storm, and Jesus walks on the water toward them. They think he is a ghost and cry out in fear. However, Peter calls to him and says, “If it’s really you, call me out on the water.” Jesus tells him to come, and Peter steps out of the boat. In the middle of a raging storm, Peter has the courage to climb out into the waves because he knows who Jesus is. He begins to sink only when he takes his eyes off Jesus and focuses on the storm around him (Matt. 14:26–31).

One of the most significant ways to combat fear is to fall in love with Jesus and know who he truly is.

As he did with Peter, Jesus is reaching out his hand to pull us up out of the waves. He is asking us to come and take a step toward him in faith.

He may not prevent the storms from coming, but he wants to walk through them with us. His peace is not of this world; it is divine. “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid” (John 14:27).

He is asking us to release our fears to him, gaze on him, and trust him. When we do, the peace of God that passes all understanding will guard our hearts and our minds (Phil. 4:6–7). Trust that he is near.

[ Our humble thanks to Revell for their partnership in today’s devotional. ]