Lost in the Desert Heat

Junjun

Riyadh

Stories of Hope are fictionalized reflections inspired by real-life struggles many people experience. Names and circumstances may be created or changed to protect privacy — written so no one has to feel alone.

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A Letter to God

Dear Lord, the sandstorm outside looks exactly like how I feel inside—chaotic, blinding, and suffocating. It has been two years since I left my home in Kidapawan, yet here I am, feeling more lost than the day I arrived. My employer barely acknowledges I am human, and the silence in this dormitory at night is louder than the bustling streets of my hometown. I came here to give my Tatay and Nanay a better life, but every peso I send back feels like it is bought with a piece of my own soul.

Why does it feel like You have abandoned me in this desert? I pray every night, but my words seem to hit the ceiling and fall back down as dust. I miss the smell of rain on hot pavement and the laughter of my cousins during town fiestas. I am so tired of the loneliness, Lord. Does my sacrifice even count for anything, or am I just another face forgotten in the distance?

Have You truly forgotten me in this foreign land? I look at the photos of my family on my phone and I do not even recognize the person looking back at me in the reflection. I am weary to the bone. What do I do now when the only thing keeping me going is the duty to provide, but the weight of that duty is crushing the life right out of me?

Your servant who is fading away, Junjun

HOPE's Response

A reply to the letter

Dear Junjun, please know that your voice has reached heaven, even in the middle of a desert. The silence you feel is not God's absence; it is a space waiting for you to pour out your rawest, most honest aches. He sees every tear you shed in that dormitory, and He counts the weight of every burden you carry for your family back in Kidapawan.

In Psalm 34:18, it is written, 'The Lord is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit.' You are not a machine built only to provide; you are a child of the Creator who is deeply loved for who you are, not just for what you produce. When the weight feels unbearable, release the need to be strong and simply let Him hold you. He knows the geography of your grief, and He is with you in the heat and the sand, waiting to be your shelter.

With love in Christ, HOPE

A Prayer from HOPE

Heavenly Father, thank You for seeing Junjun in his quiet, lonely moments. I pray that You wrap Your arms around him and remind him that he is never alone, even in the furthest corners of the earth. Replace his exhaustion with Your divine peace, sustain his heart when it feels heavy, and remind him that his worth is secure in You. Please guide his feet, calm his spirit, and lead him back to the hope that never fades. In Jesus' name, Amen.

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