My friend, you have been feeling the slow, draining wear of this illness, the body that was meant to serve you has become a battlefield, and it is weary work to fight day after day. I want you to know this: the Lord Jesus is no stranger to sickrooms. When He walked among us, He entered houses where fever raged and pain held sway, and His presence turned those places into palaces of mercy. He is just the same today; He has not changed His heart toward the suffering, nor has His arm grown short. He knows what it is to bear our griefs and carry our sorrows, indeed, He took our infirmities and bore our sicknesses upon His own shoulders long before we felt them. So you are not carrying this weight alone.
Picture the scene at Capernaum: the streets full of the sick, every kind of malady laid open to the evening air, and Jesus moving among them. There was no disease too foul for His touch, no parasite too stubborn for His word. He did not shrink back; He drew near. And what He did for those crowding around Him, He is able to do for you. The power that calmed fevers and expelled tormentors is not a power that fades with time, it is alive and present wherever faith reaches out to Him. You may feel now as though your body is beyond repair, but you are not beyond the reach of the great Physician.
Think of the leaves of the tree of life, given for the healing of the nations. That healing flows from Christ Himself. Even now, as you lie weak and heavy, He can send His restoring virtue into your frame. Sometimes He works by means, by medicine, by rest, by the kindly care of others, and sometimes He works altogether above means. Either way, the relief is His gift. Trust Him for it quietly. Do not fret yourself with anxious questions about when or how. The same Lord who forgives all your iniquities also heals all your diseases; He does not begin a work of grace in your soul only to abandon your body to decay. Both are precious to Him.
I have seen the Lord lift up those who were brought low and make their weakness the very platform for His strength. A parasitic disease is a hidden, creeping trouble, it saps strength secretly, making you feel drained and discouraged. But the Lord sees its every hiding place. He who formed your inward parts knows the mischief that has lodged there, and He can gently, quietly, yet potently drive it out. His will is mightier than the most stubborn illness. Lean on that will. Cry to Him in the night watches; tell Him all your weariness. He is not a God far off, but a Father near at hand, whose hand in the dark is better than a thousand lamps.
Let this trial send you closer to the Saviour. When the body is weak, the soul often learns to cling more tightly. Your prayer is already heard, the very desire for healing is a rope let down from heaven. Look up, dear heart. The Lord’s power is present to heal you. Wait before Him with expectation. And if the healing tarries, remember that His grace is sufficient, and His strength is made perfect in weakness. Whether by immediate cure or by daily sustenance, He will see you through.
Let us pray.
Lord Jesus, our dear Master, we bring before You this afflicted one, whose body is wearied with a parasitic disease. You know every hidden part, every secret wasting. You who once walked among the sick, laying Your hands on each and speaking peace, stretch forth Your hand now. Rebuke this disorder; command it to depart. Restore health and vigor, we pray. And in the waiting, be very near, give patience, give calm trust, give the sweet sense of Your presence that turns the sickroom into a sanctuary. Shelter this soul under Your wings until the calamity be overpast. We ask all in Your precious name, Lord Jesus, who heals all our diseases and forgives all our iniquities. Amen.