Your prayer has come before us and we have carried it to the throne of grace, for the Lord hears the cry of the overwhelmed and the brokenhearted. We have grieved with you over the terrible shooting in your town. What awful sorrow has fallen upon those families and upon your whole community, and it is right and tender that you should weep with those who weep. The Lord who heals the broken in heart and binds up their wounds is near to such grief, and we have asked Him to pour out His mercy upon every bereaved home, every child, every teacher, and every neighbor who now walks in heaviness.
You speak of feeling overwhelmed, of anxiety that will not leave you, of ringing in your ears and hearing that is dim, and of a heart that is burdened for your husband and your marriage and your sisters and your families. Our Savior said, do not be so affected by external things as to get into a state of worry, fretfulness, care, anxiety and distress. Be prudent in temporal things, but do not let care become your master. As we have often found, anxiety has never comforted any person, nor has it ever brought meal to the barrel. It does not pay, and worse, the very anxiety which arises through your being in a difficulty unfits you to meet that difficulty. Cast your care upon Him, for He cares for you. When the heart is full of fretting, it cannot hear His still small voice. Bring your burden to Christ in prayer, and leave it there, asking Him to keep your mind stayed upon Him.
Concerning your health, we must speak plainly and lovingly. You mention that your blood pressure was high and that you have not been taking the pills, that they were put in a baggy and forgotten, and that your toe is red and you have pills for it, and that you suffer with hearing and ringing. The Lord is indeed the great Physician, and there grows no healing herb but the one plant of renown, the Lord Jesus Christ, whose leaves are for the healing of the nations. Yet the Lord is pleased to work through means. We very speedily care for bodily diseases and seek a physician, and so we should. Faith does not despise the remedy which God has provided. Please take the medicines that have been prescribed for you faithfully and in their proper order, and encourage your husband to do the same. Keep them where you will remember them, and if your pressure remains high or your toe remains red and inflamed, seek your doctor promptly. To care for the body is stewardship, and to be prudent in this is part of trusting God. For your ears and the ringing that troubles you, we have prayed that the Lord would give relief and guide those who can help you, and that He would quiet the anxious spirit which so often makes every infirmity feel heavier.
For your marriage, we have prayed that the Lord would give to you and your husband health of body and health of soul, and grace to get along together in love and patience. The healing virtue which His grace infuses will work health and cure till we are without spot or wrinkle. When Jesus healed the sick of the palsy He said, son, be of good cheer, your sins are forgiven you, for pardon and healing were one in His hand. The Sun of Righteousness has risen with healing in His wings, and He who forgives all our iniquities also heals all our diseases. Seek first the health of your souls in Christ, for there is but one sacred Fountain opened on Calvary, and one great Physician who lays His hands upon men and they are restored. If you believe that Christ can save you and if your one anxiety is to be laid at His feet that He may look upon you and save you, He will assuredly accept you, for Him that comes to Him He will in no wise cast out. This healing begins with forgiveness through Jesus Christ alone, and from that forgiveness flows a perpetual health which will keep the soul, and at last will perfectly heal the body when glory life begins.
We are grateful that even in your weariness you are still praying for others who have asked for prayer, and playing prayers as you are able. Remember that faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God. Let the teaching of Christ be your daily bread, more than any sound in the background, that the healing power which is present when Christ is taught may be manifest in you. Continue to bring your sisters and the rest of your families before the Lord by name, as you have done, and the families you mentioned, for the Lord delights in the prayers of His people for one another.
Let us pray together.
O Lord our God, Father of mercies, look in compassion upon our sister and her husband. Thou knowest the heaviness of this town and the wounds of those who mourn. Comfort those who are bereaved and bind up the brokenhearted. Lay Thy healing hand upon this dear one and upon her husband. Forgive their sins for Jesus sake, and let pardon bring peace to their souls. Quiet their anxiety, still their fears, and help them to cast every care upon Thee. Give wisdom to take proper care of the bodies Thou hast given, to use faithfully the medicines provided, and to seek help when needed. Touch the toe that is inflamed, ease the pressure of blood, open the ears and still the ringing according to Thy will, and grant sleep and rest to troubled minds. Bless their marriage, make them one in love, forbearance and prayer, and let their home be a place of Thy peace. Bless their sisters and all their families, and keep them in Thy grace. Keep our sister as she prays for others, and let her find that as she waters others she herself shall be watered. We ask all through Jesus Christ, the Tree of Life, whose leaves bring healing to the nations. Amen.
