UPFRONT March 22, 2010 Issue

GOD'S LOVING SUPPORT

JEFF WARD-BAILEY, STAFF EDITOR

I first remember hearing the abbreviation "TLC" ("tender loving care") when I was in middle school. I'd written a mediocre paper for my sixth-grade English class, and after my teacher read a draft, she encouraged me to give my writing some TLC before the deadline. Later, I heard the abbreviation in Sunday School when one of my classmates talked about being comforted by her mom. Our teacher assured us that God cares for us as our Father-Mother, guarding and guiding us and giving us all the TLC we need.

This issue of the Sentinel focuses on the ways in which God's tender care for HisHer children is expressed every day. Many people enjoy a loving, attentive, supportive relationship with older relatives or friends, and this care reflects God's providence for all of us. In our lead article, Janet Clements discusses how TLC is a manifestation of divine goodness. She writes, "To grasp the idea that God is the caregiver of each one of us, opens new views of the source of all the loving care we express, as well as the energy supporting it." And, she points out, "If we are obeying the divine law in helping a dear one—family, friend, or casual acquaintance—this can only result in good to the giver as well as to the recipient" (see p. 8).

In another article, Jane Mirianki talks about how she was able to express TLC when her mother was suffering from diabetes and partial paralysis. She writes, "I saw her as under the control of Life, for I understood that Life is God and God was caring for her in all ways. Her rightful good was from God" (see p. 13). Tender support and consecrated prayer brought blessings to the whole family.

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