Say a Prayer For Me!

I was with my mom in the nursing home when two ladies from restorative therapy stopped in to check on her, as she has not been working out lately due to illness.

We had a nice visit and as they got ready to leave, my mom waved her hand and said, “Say a prayer for me!”  to which the ladies immediately responded, “Why don’t we do it right now?”

One of them offered the prayer, which to my Catholic ears, was different from how I pray, but very beautiful.  As is sometimes typical, her prayer was sprinkled with a lot of “Father God” addresses.  But what was most striking to me was her confidence in God’s power to heal.

As Mom has been quite sick, she coughed a little during the prayer.  The woman immediately brought that into the prayer, asking God to heal her entire body and restore her breathing to normal function and so forth.

The prayer solicited the power of God and beautifully expressed a deep faith and connection to our Lord.

Coming from a background of rote prayer (which is extremely reliable and helpful, especially in situations where I cannot think clearly), I have long since come to adapt my prayers to a more personal style, but still, nothing like I heard out of this woman’s mouth, a spontaneous response to a call for prayer.

In addition to this blessed moment, I cannot fail to mention the concern my mom expressed after they left:  “They could get fired for that, you know.”

I said I didn’t really think so, but the truth is, they did not hesitate to pray and did not seem to care if anyone saw them.  Now, admittedly, they may have seen the bible on the bed which I have been using during my visits with mom, and her religious placque on the wall (“The Family that Prays Together Stays Together”) but that’s not the point.  Here they were, in a secular work place, unhesitatingly calling on God for healing.

At that moment in time, not one of us cared which church any of us belonged to, because we all recognized that we belong to God.  These are moments that break down walls and bring God’s children together.  

As I was leaving later, I inquired of the faith of her roommate, because she frequently joins us for our morning scripture reading. She told me she is a Baptist.  A couple of days ago, she had been singing hymns to us.

Also a few days earlier, another resident came in to visit my mom, and he said his daughter is a pastor and he started singing.  There we were, singing together the gospel song Soon and Very Soon.

On that particular day, my mom’s roommate was in a lot of pain and felt like giving up. I have no doubt his singing raised her spirits.  Since I have seen her over the last couple of days, she is much, much better.

God penetrates every moment of our lives, often in surprising ways.  I was so lifted up by the two women praying with us, and by the singing of the other resident the day before.  These moments can bring light to some dark days.  They can transform us and bring such joy to times of struggle.

And as if that wasn’t enough of a blessing, one of the ladies that brings *holy communion to my mom during the week stopped by.  She gave such attention to my mom and her needs; she clearly was the presence of Christ with us on that day.

Although I was confident my mom would be open to listening to scripture, it is not a practice we have had much opportunity to do in the past.  She was not raised in the church and converted when she married my dad, so much of the teachings and events in the bible are new to her.

I would encourage you to never hesitate to bring the Word of God into a situation if you have a loved one who is sick.  Even if it is something you have not done before or may feel a little uncomfortable introducing.

As the woman’s prayer revealed, the power of God is tremendous.  As I read to mom, sometimes I wonder if she is tiring of it, so I ask her if I should quit.  She has always told me to continue, and as I watch her and her roommate, you can see tangibly how comforting God’s Word is.

It doesn’t require a background in theology or even a deep understanding of scripture to be able to take in the Word of God and let it soothe you.  Nor does it take either of those things to offer it to someone. Trust in the power of God.

Mom is beginning to recover from her pneumonia, but she will have plenty of challenging days ahead of her.  How amazing is our God who moves us by the Holy Spirit to be open to all that he can give, filling our hearts with the greatest joy in the midst of suffering.

Janet Cassidy

Janetcassidy.com

*Holy Communion is the body, blood, soul and divinity of Christ given under the appearance of bread and wine that unites us to Jesus.