Choose Hope
31 Days of Encouragement for Parents of Addicted Loved Ones
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Day 1
Choose to Wait Well
“Out of the depths I cry to you, O Lord! O Lord, hear my voice! Let your ears be attentive to the voice of my pleas for mercy! If you, O Lord should mark iniquities, O Lord, who could stand? But with you there is forgiveness, that you may be feared. I wait for the Lord, my soul waits, and in his word, I hope; my soul waits for the Lord. More than watchmen for the morning, more than watchmen for the morning." Psalm 130:1-3
Calling upon the Lord in our desperation is the best thing we can do.
We don’t understand why our daughters and sons abuse alcohol and drugs. We don’t know why they refuse help. We don’t understand why they are willing to lose everything good in their lives for the next high. We don’t understand why they choose to live on the street and engage in high-risk behaviors. We don’t understand their profane speech, dishonesty, and manipulation. We don’t understand their legal issues, crimes and convictions, misdemeanors, and felonies. We struggle over whether to pay their bail. We ache at their court dates, probation, jail time, and incarceration. We cry when they relapse. We think it’s all too much. Our hearts feel like they’re breaking. We feel some shame, but mostly heartache. We would have never imagined the trail of brokenness that exists. We wait.
However, waiting is not passive. Waiting builds strength within us. We can ask God to renew our minds, giving us new perspective and wisdom. Waiting for our loved ones to choose to get help is extremely difficult because we feel helpless. In our waiting, we can call on the Lord with urgent pleas to pour his mercy on our adult children. Calling on God’s mercy is waiting with expectation. Calling upon the Lord in our desperation is the best thing we can do.
Let’s wait with expectation as a watchman waits for the morning: Eager to end our night watch with a brand-new day. Eager to see God’s presence cast light over our fears on this unchartered course. We wait. Lord, have mercy.
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About the Book
As parents of addicted adult children we need our own recovery. It’s a long process and there are no shortcuts. Watching our adult child struggle with drugs and alcohol is both painful and heart wrenching. We did not choose this journey and we have no control over our sons and daughters, but we can choose how we are going to walk it out. The Choose Hope devotional offers biblical insights pertinent to the daily battle’s parents wrestle with such as enabling, regret, fear, heartache, and the inability to move forward. Parents can stay hopeful even when facing the harsh realities of our loved one’s substance use disorder.
About the Author
Deb Reyes is the mother of three grown children and “MiMi” to five granddaughters. She is a military spouse and has been married to Ken (a retired Air Force Chaplain) for forty-three years. They live in Spokane, Washington near family. Deb grew up in San Diego and has a degree in Communications from San Diego State University. She has a heart to minister to hurting parents and facilitates a weekly group for parents through PAL (Parents of Addicted Loved Ones). Facing the realities of her own son’s addiction led her to find healing in God’s compassion and grace, and through PAL. She loves spending time with her granddaughters and enjoys her two feisty cats.