“May our Lord Jesus Christ himself . . . encourage your hearts and strengthen you. . . .”

— 2 Thessalonians 2:16-17

As we sat down for breakfast at a restaurant, Jack said to me for about the tenth time, “I love you, brother; I love you so much!” I certainly didn’t feel worthy of that love because I hadn’t seen Jack for years. I was there because a friend had faithfully kept up contact much better than I had done. So this breakfast meeting was long overdue.

Some years ago, I had been in contact with Jack quite a lot. He was going through a painful time with lots of personal struggles. He had a young daughter he was trying to care for, and I was one of several people who did our best to surround him with care and encouragement. He saw it all as a gift from Jesus.

But time passed, Jack moved to another area, and I hadn’t seen him in a long time.

As I processed my own feelings of guilt for letting our friendship slide, I also began to see with new clarity what a gift Jack was to me. He showed me what resilient faith looks like in the midst of a hard story. Despite my long absence, he bore me no ill will—he was just overjoyed that I showed up. Another friend and I joked that we heard “I love you” that day more times from Jack than we had heard from our family members in a while. I was reminded of how powerful just being present can be.

This also helped me remember that the Lord Jesus is present with us always (Matthew 28:20).

Lord, thank you that no matter where we go, you are already there. Help us to bring your love to others. Amen.