© 2007 Tucker Photography.(Left to right Will Franklin, Maria, Steven, Shaoey, Mary Beth, Stevey Joy, Caleb and Emily)

1 Thess 5:17
"Pray without ceasing."

1 Thess 4:13
"But we do not want you to be uninformed brothers, about those who are asleep, that you may not grieve as others do who have no hope."

From the moment I heard about the tragic accident in the Steven Curtis Chapman family, My heart was bent towards prayer for them. Isn't that funny? I don't even know them personally ... but how kind of God that when we hear of the suffering of a brother and sister in Christ we immediately feel connected somehow. At least I do.

I was reminded yesterday that I must pray for those that are suffering. It is a mystery to me how God uses the prayers of the saints, but He does. I know that I can pray for the Chapman family, as so many others in the christian community are doing' and God uses these prayers to accomplish His purposes.

One thing that is encouraging to me is that we know that any suffering that comes into the life of the christian is not without purpose. God has a purpose for all things and we can trust Him in that. I can't even imagine the pain of their grief right now. They are swimming in sadness.

Molly Piper (John Piper's daughter in law) wrote on her blog yesterday about what the Chapman family can expect in the days, weeks, months to come. Molly writes with knowledge for she and her husband had their baby die last year. She said that tidal waves of pain will wash over them again and again and then she said,
"I’m not trying to be pessimistic or say that God is not there. He’s the tidal wave and he’s the light at the top and he’s the fresh, cold air that their lungs will scream for."
She knows the pain of grief and YET she grieves with hope. She knows her God.

So, today i will continue to pray for the Chapman family. I encourage you to do so too. They need our prayers.