JOY!

Behold, the virgin shall be with child, 

and bear a Son, 

and they shall call His name Immanuel, 

which is translated, "God with us."

--Matthew 1:23, NKJV

Call Upon the Lord

 One recent day my daily Bible reading took me to Psalm 18, a psalm David wrote centuries ago after God had miraculously delivered him from the hand of all his enemies, including King Saul. David began his song of praise with a vow to love the Lord God and to trust God to preserve his life. After describing a time (one of many!) when he was in great distress, David summarized the solution: He cried out to God for help. God rescued him.

After reading David’s story of his desperate situation and dramatic rescue, I did what David did. I cried out to God--not for myself but on behalf of a person clinging to life in a distant hospital.

Oh, Father! The pangs of death surround [NAME]. Normally, he would cry out to You for help. But since he may not be conscious enough to do that, I'm crying out for him--and his family. If he is aware of how ill he is, comfort him. Enable him to feel Your love and Your presence. Relieve his pain. Heal his diseased body.

I call upon You for I believe, as David did, that You do hear and respond to the cries of Your children. For years, You have been [NAME’S] strength, his rock, his fortress, his deliverer. Even if he can’t beg You to help him during this crisis, continue to be his shield, his hope, his stronghold. 

O LORD GOD, if it pleases You, deal speedily with all the “enemies” that are attacking his body. But if Your divine plan is to call him home, help those of us who love [NAME] to accept Your decision and to realize that even a homegoing is a way of relieving suffering, just not the one we're longing for at this time.

No matter how You choose to rescue [NAME], may all who are praying for him continue to trust You and to continue to say: