Sarah shared this article and the quote below a year ago and I can rejoice in knowing in the midst of her suffering over the past few years that God was preparing her heart and mind for her departure to heaven. Now she is complete and one with her Savior, never more prone to wander. God now uses this affliction and pain to likewise call me to a closer walk with Him. I pray now as Jon Bloom wrote in this article.
“The Lord has been at work in my heart and life, and I can truly say, that feeling my real desperation and utter need for Him alone, is truly a gift…even in the midst of great physical suffering – it is a blessing to be drawn so very close to His precious side.” – Sarah Kopp
“Affliction makes us feel our real desperation for God, and we cry out for him. That’s why Paul boasted more in his weaknesses than his strengths. He knew that when he was weak, he was strong — because when he was weak, God was his strength (2 Corinthians 12:9–10). In all our proneness to wander astray from the God we love, we don’t need to ask our loving heavenly Father for affliction. Instead, let us ask Him for the merciful gift of desperation, for that is what we really need. We do not need to be afraid to ask him to make us desperate for him, because our Father loves to give good gifts to us (Luke 11:13). We can trust him to do for us what we need most. Therefore, we can make this our prayer: Whatever it takes, Lord, decrease my proneness to wander from you by keeping me desperate for you.” – Jon Bloom