Grace

As I type this, I am listening to Emily and Eric sitting on either side of their dad, telling him how much they love him, they need him and all of the things that they love about him and why they need him to get well and come home. Needless to say, tears stream down my cheeks. This is grace, the grace of children.

I, in turn, am reading the COUNTLESS emails and facebook posts that are flooding my inbox, so many people all over praying for Chris. This, too, is grace.

And we are surrounded by a loving God, who is leading us through. I am sharing, without permission but I trust her to be okay with this, a prayer my cousin Jodi wrote for Chris and Jodi, thank you for your grace.

Dear Lord,
We come to You right now with humble spirits and joyful hearts.... We are overwhelmed by Your mercy and grace bestowed upon us daily. You love us so much, inspite of ourselves and we praise You for that. Today, You alone, understand our pain and fear. You know the valley we are walking through because You have already walked it. We know that this set back has not caught You by surprise but, we are scared none the less. God thank you for the healing that has taken place so far... You are the great physician and we hold tight to our faith, knowing that You are worthy and able! Lord, right now, I pray that Your presence would fill that room right now! I pray believing that RIGHT NOW God, You would place Your healing hands on Chris' kidneys..... I pray believing that right now God, Your arms are wrapped around his body laying an anointing on him that will cure all his ailments. I pray right now God that Your mercy would be felt and there would be a peace in that room that everyone doctor and nurse who enters will feel. Lord, I pray through this that everyone who has the priviledge of treating Chris would feel a change in their own lives with You Lord. We know that the medicine needs time to work and we know that Chris' body needs time to heal. Thank you for the hospital that has the capability to make all those things work physically for him.

Heavenly Father, You are intimately aware of the struggle we are experiencing -- the pain and the despair. You know the desire of our hearts for Chirs to be healed of this illness. We ask now for Your healing touch. We know that You are able and that just like in Bible times, You can heal me. We also understand that You will chose what is best for Chris. We pray that through this trial, we will ALL draw close to You -- that You will be our comfort and strength. We pray that ultimately, whatever happens, You will be glorified through this. We pray this in Jesus’ name, amen.