When he has drifted from God

You know how much I miss sharing faith with my son. I miss the prayers, the conversations, the sense that we were facing toward You together. Now there is distance where there was once closeness, and I am afraid for his soul.

Jesus, go after him with the love that does not tire or lose sight of the one who has wandered. Meet him beyond the reach of my words, in places I cannot see and questions I cannot answer. Let him remember Your voice as an invitation, not an accusation. Bring across his path people who carry Your grace honestly. Awaken in him a longing for what is true.

Give me patience that does not become indifference and concern that does not become pressure. Keep me from treating every conversation as an opening for a sermon. Help me listen to him, enjoy him, and love the man he is without making him feel that my affection depends on his return to church.

I place the fear I carry into Your keeping. I cannot hurry his heart, and I do not know what You may be doing in its hidden places. Hold him near even when he does not know he is being held. And while I wait, keep my own faith tender, my welcome warm, and my hope rooted in You.