Unfailing Love Makes The Difference

Unfailing Love Makes The Difference

Each day the LORD pours his unfailing love upon me, and through each night I sing his songs, praying to God who gives me life. Psalm 42:8

On the night when Lisa entered the detox unit, she looked like all the other heroin addicts we took in—track marks on her arms and clothes that hung loosely from her anorexic frame. One of the most addictive substances on earth, heroin is a strong demon that takes its toll.

“How many times have you been in rehab?” I asked as I filled out her intake form.

“I’ve been in five or six times to get straightened out . . . but this time it’s going to be different.”

I could have told her that we heard this line several times a night, every night, but she seemed convinced. And then she told me why.

“Last week I walked into a little church down the street, and the preacher told me that Jesus loves me and would forgive me—no matter what I’ve done, no matter how bad my sin has been. The preacher said that all I had to do was ask for forgiveness and believe that Jesus is the Son of God, and Jesus would wash me white as snow.”

Being white as snow probably seemed like an impossible dream to someone so filthy from living on the streets, but her face lit up, and her eyes sparkled as she spoke.

When she said, “Jesus is going to set me free from these drugs. I just know it,” I, too, became convinced that this time would be different for Lisa. The nurses who witnessed Lisa’s declaration later agreed that it was the most powerful and real testimony we’d ever heard.

Before entering the unit, Lisa asked for a Bible and a hymnal. For the next few days, and especially when her cravings were the strongest, we heard Lisa reading out loud from the Bible or singing from the hymnal.

By the time she went home, Lisa had been healed by the unfailing love of God. As she waved good-bye with a giant grin on her face, she almost seemed to glow.

To all of us, and in the eyes of God, she truly was white as snow.

TODAY’S RX

When you want things to be different in your life, ask God for forgiveness, and ask him to cleanse you of your sin.

Jesus, I am clean only because of your perfect sacrifice, so I ask that you please forgive me and wash away all that keeps me from drawing close to you. Thank you for loving me so deeply.