Thank you for sharing this heavy burden and allowing us to pray with you for your brother. We have lifted him before the Lord, asking for healing, protection, and strength in the days ahead after this very serious surgery on his aorta, and through the setback of going in and out of coma and the infection he contracted in the hospital.
We know how difficult it is to watch someone you love move between hope and crisis, awake and then unresponsive again, and we grieve with you over the physical and emotional toll this has taken on him and on all who love him.
We do believe that God heals, and that healing is for today. Scripture shows us that Jesus healed every kind of sickness and disease among the people, and Matthew connects that ministry to the prophecy of Isaiah, surely he has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows, where the word for griefs can be understood as infirmities and sicknesses. When Jesus gave his body for us, he bore not only our sin but also our infirmities. That is why we can come boldly and ask him for physical healing.
At the same time, the Bible shows us that Jesus did not heal in only one way. Sometimes he healed instantly with a word, sometimes with a touch, sometimes from a distance when he simply said go home and it was done, and in one case the healing was gradual. He is not confined to a pattern. There is also a healing that God has built into our bodies themselves. The slow, natural process of recovery, the work of doctors and nurses, the return of appetite and strength, the ability to stand and walk again, all of that is no less divine because God is the one who created those processes. Any true healing is from him.
Because of that we do not want you to be discouraged if the answer does not come all at once. The Scriptures tell of those who were cleansed as they went, step by step, and that encourages us to keep trusting the Lord even while we wait. We also recognize with humility that we do not understand why some are healed quickly and others walk a longer road. Even the apostle Paul prayed three times for his thorn in the flesh to be removed and the Lord answered in a different way. So we do not presume to tell God what he must do, but we do know he is able, he is compassionate, and he invites us to keep asking.
We are praying that God would touch your brother in body, mind, and spirit. We are asking the Lord to clear this infection completely, to protect him from further harm, to restore his heart and strength, to give him a good appetite and nourishment, to lift the confusion and discouragement that so often comes after coma and long hospitalization, and to bring him to the place where he can again stand, walk, and return healthy to his home. We are also praying for emotional healing for him, for peace in place of fear, and for comfort and strength for you and your family as you wait and care for him.
We will continue to bring him before the Lord, giving thanks even now for the life God has sustained and trusting him for each next step. May the Lord draw near to your brother, lay his hand upon him, and do that work which only he can do, according to his mercy and power in Jesus name.