The afflictions you bear, in your mother’s body and in your impoverished circumstances, are indeed heavy, and you do well to flee to the Great Physician, calling on the name of Jesus Christ. Yet I would not have you think that God’s love has abandoned you. Recall the righteous Job, who sat scraping his sores, his children dead, his friends accusing him of hidden sin, and he knew no certain reason for his sorrows. Even so, with your father now with the Lord, your mother suffering, and you without employment, it is easy to cry out in confusion. But cling to this: the same God who permitted these trials will not fail to provide for you. Will He who gave His own Son for your salvation forget your daily bread?
For your mother’s fatty liver, I exhort you first to seek the aid of physicians, for they are ministers of God’s mercy. But do not trust in them alone. Take up the holy Scriptures as a chest of medicines for the soul. When grief befalls you, do not wait for another to teach you; read the Gospels, the Epistles, and let them be your constant teachers. There you will find balm for anxiety and a remedy for despair. Often I see many who, while here in the assembly, are moved to zeal, but when they depart, the flame is quenched by the business of life. Therefore, as soon as you return home, take the Bible and with your mother call to mind what you have heard, and only then attend to your affairs. This will keep your heart steadfast in the midst of trouble.
As for the debts that press upon you and the need for a certain sum each month, I grieve with you. But take heed that this anxiety does not breed anger or envy against those who prosper, nor lead you to remember wrongs. The ways of revengeful men are unto death. If you harbor bitterness, how can you ask healing of God? Rather, look to the early Church: when the brethren in Judea were afflicted, the disciples determined to send relief, every man according to his ability. So I urge the congregation here to do likewise. But you, on your part, do not neglect the work of your hands nor cease to seek honest employment. The Apostle commands that if any would not work, neither should he eat. Yet while you wait, do not let your spirit sink. The same Spirit who distributes gifts gives not as a debt but as He wills. Though you receive but little now, you still contribute to the body of Christ, and even in this you are honored.
You ask for guidance and a prosperous future for you and your mother. God has already given you a pattern in the family. For as in a monarchy, so in a household, He has placed order so that there might be unanimity. Your earthly father is gone, but God is the Father of the fatherless, and your heavenly Bridegroom, Christ, watches over you. Seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added. Make the oracles of God your counselors. No man teaches you as they; many teach for vanity’s sake, but the Spirit Himself speaks in the Scriptures. Keep them in your mind, and they will lead you into all truth.
And do not imagine that your prayers are unheard because relief delays. Even if you have come to the very gates of despair, it is possible to recover. How many, after hearing ten times and remaining insensible, have later brought forth abundant fruit! So now, let this affliction be the medicine that restores your soul. I will pray with you, and the church will pray, that Almighty God heal your mother, give her a healthy liver and length of days, that He open a door of employment for you, and that you both may prosper in Him. But more than these things, pray that you may be found faithful, whether in plenty or in want. For the resurrection awaits, where you shall see your father again, if you hold fast. Amen.