When One Person Chooses to Stay
- 9 hours ago
- 4 min read
Be devoted to one another in love. Honor one another above yourselves.” — Romans 12:10
From the moment my mom brought my sister home wrapped in a soft green-and-yellow ducky blanket, I remember it clearly.
We were just… different.
Different personalities.
Different ways of seeing the world.
Different ways of responding to things from the very beginning.
And as her older sister, I didn’t always understand her.
But families don’t happen by accident. At least mine didn’t.
My mom chose to have us through artificial insemination. So I like to say we’re designer babies.
And somehow… God knew exactly what He was doing when He gave me her.
Because she was enough. Just her. No other siblings needed.
As we got older, life got harder—and we didn’t walk the same road.
We went in different directions.
There were seasons where we weren’t close. Seasons where we didn’t understand each other. Seasons where, if I’m being honest, we probably wouldn’t have chosen each other.
But grace has a way of circling back.
And somehow, it always brought us back to each other.
Everything shifted when our dad went to prison.
That moment didn’t just change our family—it revealed the difference in how we processed pain, faith, and God Himself.
I wrestled.
I wrestled with who God was.
I wrestled with how something like that could happen.
I wrestled with what it meant about everything I thought I believed.
My sister… didn’t.
That was when she came to know the Lord.
And instead of questioning Him, she obeyed Him.
Where I pulled back, she leaned in.
Where I needed answers, she chose trust.
Where I created distance, she chose presence.
And that’s where the wedge formed.
She felt the Lord tell her to stay.
To show up.
To love.
To pray.
To be, possibly, the only reflection of Jesus our dad would ever see behind prison walls.
And she did.
She stayed when it cost her something.
She stayed when people didn’t understand.
She stayed when it would have been easier—and more accepted—to walk away.
She lost friendships over it.
She was judged for it.
She was misunderstood.
But she stayed.
With the one.
I didn’t fully understand the weight of that decision until years later.
I heard her speak to a group of women, sharing her story—and something in me shifted.
For the first time, I saw her clearly.
Not just as my little sister.
But as a woman who chose obedience over understanding.
Who chose love when it wasn’t easy.
Who chose to reflect Jesus when it would have been easier to step away.
She chose hard.
And now, she’s living in the fruit of that obedience.
We haven’t had a perfect relationship.
There were seasons we didn’t get it right.
But there’s something about family—real love—that refuses to break, even when it bends.
And now, I see her differently.
I learn from her.
I look to her.
I try to see situations the way she does—through the lens of Jesus.
Because here’s what I know about my sister:
If I call her and say, “I need prayer right now,” she doesn’t hesitate.
She shows up—even if her own world is on fire.
If I need wisdom, she doesn’t offer opinions—she opens the Word.
She speaks truth, not just comfort.
If everything around me feels chaotic, she is steady.
Consistent.
Grounded.
And that’s the gift.
Not just a sister.
Not just a built-in best friend.
Not just someone to share life with.
But someone to walk through the hard with.
To celebrate the good with.
To witness redemption with.
So to my sister—because I know you’re reading this since you're on my mailing list ;)
Thank you.
Thank you for staying when it would have been easier to leave.
Thank you for choosing obedience when I was still wrestling.
Thank you for loving in a way that didn’t always make sense—but was right.
You didn’t just show up for him.
You showed me what it actually looks like to follow Jesus when it costs something.
And I see it now.
I see the strength it took.
I see the faith it required.
I see the quiet, steady obedience that didn’t need recognition—but changed everything.
You taught me that faith isn’t about having all the answers—it’s about trusting God enough to obey Him anyway.
Your life has always been marked with purpose.
And I believe part of that purpose… was me.
To stretch me.
To challenge me.
To show me what this really looks like.
I didn’t understand it then.
But I do now.
And I’m so grateful… that God didn’t just give you your story—
He gave me you.
REFLECTION
Where in your life are you still trying to understand before you trust?
What would it look like to surrender that to God today?
PRAYER:
Lord,
Thank You for the people You place in our lives on purpose.
The ones who challenge us, stretch us, and quietly show us what it looks like to follow You—especially when it’s hard.
Thank You for the ones who stay.
The ones who choose obedience when it doesn’t make sense.
The ones who reflect You in ways we don’t always understand at first.
Help us to recognize those gifts.
Give us the humility to learn from them, and the courage to live with that same kind of faith.
Teach us to trust You, even when we don’t have all the answers.
Teach us to love like You—steadfast, patient, and unwavering.
And when we’re faced with the choice to walk away or to stay…give us the strength to choose what is right.
Amen.
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