The Holding Place

Sunday, May 4, 2025

Third Sunday of Easter

International Family Equality Day

Rachel Hall-Dew (she/her)

Activist and Mother

Allied Christian

A poetic devotional for those caught in the flames and lost in the deserts of life

I must believe

That from this void of darkness

With no good end in sight

A radiant light will shine through

The warmth of the Son for me and you

For it is said,

“If you spend yourselves on behalf of the hungry and satisfy the needs of the oppressed, then your light will rise in the darkness, your night will become like the noonday.” (Isaiah 58:10)

Lord, let it be so.

And I must choose faith

That from the pangs of loneliness

And wrongful accusation

Connection will grow anew

And blessed freedom will ring true

For it is said,

“God sets the lonely in families, he leads out the prisoners with singing.” (Psalm 68:6)

Lord, let it be so.

I must surrender and trust

That in waves of hardship

In the crushing weight of uncertainty

A new path will be made clear

A new way to breathe free from fear

For it is said,

“See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up, do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland.” (Isaiah 43:19)

Lord, let it be so.

And I must hold on to hope

That from the chains of oppression

And the loss of human rights

Justice will roll down unending

Our weary souls will receive their mending

For it is said,

“I remain confident in this: I will see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living.” (Psalm 27:13)

Lord, let it be so.

I must cling to the truth

That in confusion and loss

In heartache and sorrow

Love still leads the way

Love will always save the day

For it is said,

“Owe no one anything except to love each other, for the one who loves another has fulfilled the law.” (Romans 13:8)

Lord, let it be so.

Prayer

Lord, in our trials and tribulations, in our obstacles and challenges, in our pain and anger and grief, we ask that you would make a way when there seems to be no way. Amen.