He Giveth, and Giveth, and Giveth Again
by Amy Givler, MD

"...My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness..." (2 Corinthians 12:9, ESV).

My parents are elderly - 85 and 90 years old. They live independently, but they are at the point where setbacks happen weekly, if not daily. And they never really get back to the point they were before.

Over the years, I've had patients describe to me how exhausted they feel caring for their elderly parents, even when they don't live with them. Now I understand. When with them, I am constantly assessing how they're managing, and I am watching for changes. When I'm away, any phone call could mean a disruption of my day or even a disaster. And if they don't answer the phone when I call, I have to struggle not to panic.

If I rely on my own ability to cope, I will quickly become depleted. I need the renewal of God's grace pouring into me, minute by minute.

Annie Johnson Flint also needed God's grace to get through each day. Just four years after she was born in 1866, her mother died giving birth to her sister. Her father placed the two girls in his stern sister's house, where they were not welcome. Two years later they were adopted by a kind, Christian couple, and they spent a happy childhood. Annie trained to be an elementary school teacher, but she developed rheumatoid arthritis during her second year of teaching, which cut her teaching career short. That same year, her adoptive parents sickened and died within a few months of each other, leaving her and her sister alone once more.

Annie soon was so debilitated she couldn't walk and lived in constant pain until she died in 1932. She supported herself by writing verses for greeting cards and gift books, but the act of writing was difficult because of her gnarled fingers. She also wrote many hymns, many of which are still sung today. I have long loved her hymn "He Giveth More Grace," though only when I learned her story did the words really shine.

He giveth more grace as our burdens grow greater,
He sendeth more strength as our labors increase;
To added afflictions He addeth His mercy,
To multiplied trials He multiplies peace.

When we have exhausted our store of endurance,
When our strength has failed ere the day is half done,
When we reach the end of our hoarded resources
Our Father's full giving is only begun.

Fear not that thy need shall exceed His provision,
Our God ever yearns His resources to share;
Lean hard on the arm everlasting, availing;
The Father both thee and thy load will upbear.

His love has no limits, His grace has no measure,
< His power no boundary known unto men;
For out of His infinite riches in Jesus
He giveth, and giveth, and giveth again.

Prayer:
Precious Father,
Thank you for supplying your infinite riches in Jesus when I have reached the end of my hoarded resources and my store of endurance. Your grace is always sufficient.
Amen