Finding Grace in Desperate Times (#643)

It's one thing to be certain of God's love when all is well and quite another to find it deeply reassuring in the most desperate of times. Wayne has known Jack and Nancy Gerry for almost thirty years and watched God lead them on an amazing transformation. Now, well into their 80s the are facing the challenge of advanced stages of Alzheimer's Disease. How does grace work in the most desperate circumstances, and how do you find the love of God in that which you God's love would compel him to heal? In a recent trip to Maine, Wayne spent two days with this delightful couple and talked to Jack about the challenges they are facing and the provision they are finding in this season of their lives.

Podcast Notes:
First Podcast with Jack Gerry, When You Can't Play the Game Any Longer
Wayne's Travel Schedule
The latest news from our project in Kenya
Add your voice to our question/comment line via Skype at "TheGodJourney"

4 Comments

  1. Thank you so much for sharing this conversation. Left me with much to think about regarding how I walk with Him through my own pain and sense of injustice with the “brokenness of the world” impacting me. Blessings, Sue

  2. Thank you so much for shairing jacks life with us.i was deeply moved by this man’s humilaty and understanding of the deep love Christ has for him in his pain and his reliance upon Gods love within that pain.what a wonderful testimony.o how we need to here more of men like this.thankyou so much has helped me in my own pain.

  3. Wayne, thank you for this podcast. It was such joy to hear the voice of someone who has been such a big influence in my life and my husband. We first crossed paths with Jack and Nancy when our son discovered their ministry to teens and he became involved in Crossroads. Many years later, Joe and I were blessed to be a part of the Crossroads Board. Jack has always been consistent in his teaching…its not religion, it’s about relationship. And to hear him saying “run to Jesus” on this podcast is so typical. We have knownsome who face struggles and as a result they run FROM Jesus. Love this family and we are praying for them.

  4. What a wonderful legacy and journey of love together. I knew exactly what he was talking about when he mentioned the story of the bees! =) Wayne I really appreciated what you had to say in response to Jack’s comments on being a “Calvi-Menian” (love that!). It was an opportunity for Papa to open up something for me in a way He has been doing lately: I’m seeing more and more false dichotomies all around me. He is showing me how things are not black/white but instead nuanced and mysterious; beautiful, even.

    Re: whether or not healing comes. The idea was put forth re: “If God had wanted to He *could* have healed…” my old thinking has been: “If God *didn’t* choose to heal, it means (only ever!) one of two things. Either, He didn’t *want* to heal” *OR* “If God *didn’t* heal, it means He *couldn’t* heal”. I’m seeing now that neither is true! If healing does not come, it does *not* mean He couldn’t or didn’t want to!

    Likewise re: God “allowing” things to happen. If anything happens, either He “caused” it, or He “allowed” it. My ideas on Sovereignty demanded *either* one *or* the other. And I am seeing more and more that there is a mysterious middle-ground where faith in His goodness is what I can hold on to; His great love for us.

    Trying to pin Him down into one of only two options is not possible. As Rob Bell has alluded: if we use the phrase “out of the box” we are still using ‘the box’ as the reference point! And God’s ways and thoughts are higher than ours (yes and amen!).

    I’m looking forward to the next installment as you and Brad discuss more of the same.

    Sign me: Learning to trust when I can’t understand, and finding that WAY better than having understanding…at least sometimes! ;^)

    ~ Keith

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