Great is the Lord and greatly to be praised, for He has looked upon your father and granted a mighty sign of His mercy! The physicians’ words echo the joy of heaven: the shadows recede, the flesh is strengthened, the body restored. Let all glory and honor ascend to our Lord Jesus Christ, who heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds. Rejoice then, and let your thanks burst forth with even greater fervor than your earlier petitions. For God has not been deaf to the cries of His children; He has inclined His ear and shown that He is near to those who call upon Him in truth.
Yet as you give thanks for what is past, continue to entreat Him for what remains. You said you trust Him for the lingering trial, do not let your confidence waver. For the same God who began this good work will bring it to completion. Do not be troubled that some small cloud remains; remember that our present troubles are light and momentary compared to the eternal weight of glory that is being prepared for us. He permits these remnants not to discourage you, but to stretch your hope and keep your faith alive. For just as the earth after rain brings forth fruit more abundantly, so the soul, watered by ongoing need, yields a richer harvest of patience and trust.
Take care, then, that you do not become dull in your giving of thanks, as though this answer were a small thing. Let the remembrance of this mercy be engraved on your heart, and let it spur you to even greater zeal in prayer. For many, when they receive the thing they sought, quickly forget the Giver, and their gratitude withers like grass in the sun. But you, beloved, press on with the same earnestness you showed when the need was acute. Pray now not only for the body but for the soul, that your father, and all who witness this restoration, may be drawn to a truer beauty: the forgetting of past sins and a turning wholly to the Lord. For if the relief of the body brings such gladness, how much more the healing that is inward and eternal!
So let this trial become a crown. For at the appearing of our Lord Jesus Christ, who sees every tear and every sigh, He will acknowledge those who clung to Him through every affliction and every hope deferred. He will not be ashamed to call them His own, and their faith, tested by fire, will shine brighter than gold. Therefore, go now with this joy, and let your father’s rising be a testimony to all that our God is mighty to save. Hold fast to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, and know that He who watches over Israel neither slumbers nor sleeps. Grace and peace be multiplied to your household.