In February of 1983, my father was diagnosed with a malignant brain tumor. He came through surgery well but the radiation therapy that followed took its toll, leaving him weak and frail. Around Thanksgiving of that year, we learned that the tumor had returned. The doctor said he had six weeks to live.

Receiving this kind of prognosis often brings out differences of opinion and belief among Christians. Some people said, “You need to have faith that he’ll be healed.” Others said, “You need to accept that he’s going to die.” Everyone seemed to know the right thing to believe, everyone except me. Filled with turmoil and confusion, I took a walk and cried out to God, “What do I believe?” Immediately a still small voice whispered, “I know Whom I have believed and am persuaded that He is able to keep that which I’ve committed unto Him against that day.” (II Timothy 1:12).

Peace permeated my heart as I meditated on that verse. I might not know what I believed about whether my father would die or be healed, but I knew the One in Whom I believed, the One who knew His plan for my father, the One I could trust with the final outcome. And I was persuaded that I could safely commit Daddy into His keeping.

Since my father was saying he wanted to trust God to heal him, I took my cue from him. Before we left my parents’ home in Maryland, I told my mother, “As long as healing is what Daddy wants, I’ll pray with him for healing. If he changes his mind, I’ll follow his lead.” I returned to Sandy Lake at peace about trusting God with Daddy’s health.

A few weeks later, my father went into a coma and when he regained consciousness, he told Mom, “I don’t want to fight anymore. I just want to go home to be with Jesus.” I sensed Daddy’s home going would be soon and prepared to go back to Maryland. On our way, I told the Lord, “I’m not quite ready to let him go yet. Could you give me a little more time?”

The week that followed was one of the most precious in my life as it related to my relationship with my father, which had sometimes been difficult. What a blessing to be able to do things for him─he’d never really needed help from anyone, always having been strong and healthy. I told him it was a blessing, not a burden to help care for him. I read Scripture to him and discovered we had a mutual love for the 12th chapter of Romans. I laughed at his jokes, delighted that he never lost his sense of humor.

What a great gift God gave me, peace to surrender my father to Him and grace to enjoy one more memorable week. When someone dear to him complained that it wasn’t fair that her father, who wasn’t serving the Lord, was in good health while my father who loved Jesus was dying, Daddy said softly, “But I’m ready to go, and he’s not.” Daddy died on Christmas day at age 67, going into the presence of his Savior.

If you find yourself in a situation where you don’t know what to believe or how to pray for a loved one, commit them into the hands of the One in Whom you have believed, being persuaded that He is able to keep them and bring about His purposes for their lives.

Father, when we struggle so hard to believe the right things in difficult situations, enable us to surrender control and place our loved ones in the keeping of the One who does all things well. Amen.