Kind and loving heavenly Father, to have health of body and mind is a wonderful blessing. Soundness, strength, and responsiveness bring great joy, even when the limbs respond and the mind functions so easily without much thought given to them. Thank you for these gifts.
At the same time, give us compassion and patience with those who are bereft in some way of these gifts.
- We remember the person who takes 20 pills of prescription medicine for his maladies.
- We remember those who think suicide is better than life.
- We remember those who live in depression and for whom every day is a black cloud that presses down to crush the spirit.
- We remember that person who lives in chronic and shooting pain.
- We remember those who were abused as children and may still enter abusive relationships.
- We remember that soul who lives in debilitating fear.
- We remember those who must cope with crippling disorders and limiting syndromes.
- We remember those who have lost limbs or deal with numbness or paralysis or live with bodies that do not respond.
- We remember those confined to wheelchairs and homes or limited in their movements.
- We remember the elderly who face the decline of physical strength and the loss of mobility and freedom.
- We remember those who are victims of medical malpractice, who have fallen through the cracks of healthcare, or who have suffered from misdiagnosis.
- We remember those who seem normal from all appearances, yet suffer from deep wounds or powerful struggles in the soul.
- We remember ourselves, O Lord, each of us with our own weaknesses, limitations, and frailties.
For each of us, God of compassion, may we seek our answers, not in man and his remedies, but in the welcoming embrace of the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, who was a man of pain and suffering, and a man of obedience, joy, and promise, because he did your will and found meaning in your loving purpose.
