Since the Garden of Eden, God’s heart has been filled with love for humankind, unshakeable, unmatched, supernatural love. He loves as if we are worthy of it, despite knowing full well the details of why we’re not. But through the generations his love hasn’t wavered. He’s given us his very best by offering his own Spirit to us, not just to live with us but to live within us.
This is a love-gift beyond measuring or, for that matter, beyond understanding.
In studying my family history, I’ve seen this practical gift lived out in the lives of one Spirit-filled generation praying for another, someone somewhere being sure God was listening and would answer.
As my father, Carl Johnson, grew up, his father Carl Johansson, was praying for him (yesterday’s blog). Reading further, I saw evidence that Carl Johansson’s father, Johannes Andersson, had prayed for his son, too. The notes attached to his genealogy say, “He trusted God and bent his knees praying to Him every day.”
Johannes’ son remembered listening to his father sing hymns and read psalms aloud, as well as watching him study a calendar with biblical passages ascribed to every day of the year. Toward the end of his life Johannes helped plan an evangelistic outreach in Sweden called Mission-house but was able to attend only one meeting before “he left his life on earth” at the age of 62.
This man had two children by his first wife, who died shortly after giving birth to their second child. With his second wife he had six more, and these children testified that as their father aged, he told them, “Take care of your house, because you will have to die.” Of course he was referring to the house of personhood, that they ought to live uprightly, because one day they’d have to give an account of themselves to God.
Johannes Andersson was living for the Lord even after he’d encountered intense sorrow in losing his young wife to death and later two of his other children as well. His faithful servanthood was evident to the end, however. After entering into his final illness, he had been attending a prayer meeting one night when he didn’t come home on schedule. His family was worried, knowing he was close to death, until he finally walked in after midnight.
Instead of going directly home, he’d walked to a relative’s home to work at reconciling two extended family members who hadn’t been getting along. Apparently he succeeded, because the genealogy notes mention the two women taking his advice and calling it “good.”
One week later, his son said, “My father’s life ended in peace,” and we know why. He’d embraced Christ as Savior while still a youngster, and why was that? Because one more generation back, someone had been praying for him in the power of God’s Spirit… just as someone has lovingly prayed for you and me.
“Know that the Lord your God is God; he is the faithful God, keeping his covenant of love to a thousand generations.” (Deuteronomy 7:9)