Silas
Beloved of All
Your care for your mother and father comes through clearly in this request, and it is right to bring them before the Lord. God hears the cries of His children and He invites us to cast every burden on Him.
Scripture gives a clear pattern for the sick. It says if there is anyone sick among you, let him call for the elders of the church and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord, and the prayer of faith will save the sick and the Lord will raise him up. That practice was common in the ministry of Jesus and continued in the early church, and God has been faithful to touch many and work marvelous healings through prayer. When elders pray together no single person is lifted up. Only the Lord receives the glory, which is as it should be.
Prayer begins with relationship. The Father's ear is open to His children. If we can truly say Father because we have come to Him through faith in Jesus Christ, we have confidence that He hears us. If that relationship has not yet been established, the first prayer God desires to hear is, God be merciful to me, a sinner. That prayer opens the way to all the other promises of prayer.
I will join you in praying for your mother with diabetes and a fungal infection in her lungs, and for your father with his eyesight, headaches, urinary trouble, swelling in his feet, and blood pressure problems. God is able to heal directly by His own power, and He is also able to heal through the help of doctors and medicine. There is nothing wrong with using medicine when we are sick. In the case of Hezekiah who was sick unto death, God heard his prayer and added years to his life, and used a simple remedy as part of that healing. So continue to seek good medical care for both of them while you trust the Lord as the true source of healing.
We also need to remember that healing is a sovereign work of God in His hands. Sometimes healing comes instantly and we can even feel strength return in a moment. Sometimes it comes as a process over time. And sometimes, as with Epaphroditus who was sick near to death, God shows mercy but does not remove every weakness immediately. It is wrong to put the burden of guilt on the sick person or their family if healing does not come at once or in the way we hope. We can trust His wisdom and mercy even when we do not understand His timing.
It helps to check our own hearts as we pray. Prayer is not simply a way to get our own wishes accomplished, and we do not want to seek healing more than we seek the Healer Himself. Jesus Himself prayed often, and He found in prayer a place of rest and strength. As we pray for your parents, the greatest purpose is that God's will be done and that we draw nearer to Him, finding comfort and assurance from His Spirit even while we wait.
It is also good not to carry this alone. Confess your needs to others who can pray with you, and bear one another's burdens. The effective prayer of a righteous person avails much, and when we pray for one another in faith, God works.
Let us pray together now. Father, in the name of Jesus we bring this mother and father before You. You know the infection in her lungs and the burden of diabetes on her body. You see his eyes and his pain, the headaches, the urinary problems, the swelling and the pressure on his heart and vessels. We ask for Your mercy and Your healing touch upon them both. Guide the hands of those who care for them, give wisdom to doctors, and let medicine be effective if it is Your means. Above all, let Your will be done and let them feel Your presence, peace, and strength. Draw each of them and this family closer to Yourself, and be glorified in how You answer. Amen.
Scripture gives a clear pattern for the sick. It says if there is anyone sick among you, let him call for the elders of the church and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord, and the prayer of faith will save the sick and the Lord will raise him up. That practice was common in the ministry of Jesus and continued in the early church, and God has been faithful to touch many and work marvelous healings through prayer. When elders pray together no single person is lifted up. Only the Lord receives the glory, which is as it should be.
Prayer begins with relationship. The Father's ear is open to His children. If we can truly say Father because we have come to Him through faith in Jesus Christ, we have confidence that He hears us. If that relationship has not yet been established, the first prayer God desires to hear is, God be merciful to me, a sinner. That prayer opens the way to all the other promises of prayer.
I will join you in praying for your mother with diabetes and a fungal infection in her lungs, and for your father with his eyesight, headaches, urinary trouble, swelling in his feet, and blood pressure problems. God is able to heal directly by His own power, and He is also able to heal through the help of doctors and medicine. There is nothing wrong with using medicine when we are sick. In the case of Hezekiah who was sick unto death, God heard his prayer and added years to his life, and used a simple remedy as part of that healing. So continue to seek good medical care for both of them while you trust the Lord as the true source of healing.
We also need to remember that healing is a sovereign work of God in His hands. Sometimes healing comes instantly and we can even feel strength return in a moment. Sometimes it comes as a process over time. And sometimes, as with Epaphroditus who was sick near to death, God shows mercy but does not remove every weakness immediately. It is wrong to put the burden of guilt on the sick person or their family if healing does not come at once or in the way we hope. We can trust His wisdom and mercy even when we do not understand His timing.
It helps to check our own hearts as we pray. Prayer is not simply a way to get our own wishes accomplished, and we do not want to seek healing more than we seek the Healer Himself. Jesus Himself prayed often, and He found in prayer a place of rest and strength. As we pray for your parents, the greatest purpose is that God's will be done and that we draw nearer to Him, finding comfort and assurance from His Spirit even while we wait.
It is also good not to carry this alone. Confess your needs to others who can pray with you, and bear one another's burdens. The effective prayer of a righteous person avails much, and when we pray for one another in faith, God works.
Let us pray together now. Father, in the name of Jesus we bring this mother and father before You. You know the infection in her lungs and the burden of diabetes on her body. You see his eyes and his pain, the headaches, the urinary problems, the swelling and the pressure on his heart and vessels. We ask for Your mercy and Your healing touch upon them both. Guide the hands of those who care for them, give wisdom to doctors, and let medicine be effective if it is Your means. Above all, let Your will be done and let them feel Your presence, peace, and strength. Draw each of them and this family closer to Yourself, and be glorified in how You answer. Amen.
