Even though I have seen miraculous healing in my travels, I do not believe in miracle healers. At least not on this side of heaven. There’s even a school in South Carolina where  you can go to now to learn to be a faith healer.

I don’t believe – in the unseen parts of the gospels – that Jesus took any sort of a how-to course in healing the blind or raising the dead. He seems to have worked from a place of simple assurance with words like:

“Your faith has set you free.”

So what to do when someone is in a very bad way, with a situation that cannot be put right, or won’t ever heal as we know it? What about folks who live in a place of a horrible natural disaster, or who were in the wrong place at the wrong time when some madness broke loose?

This is  a tough prayer – one of the most difficult you can utter since you know deep down that praying “cure my friend” most likely won’t happen. It’s difficult to keep praying along the lines of “do what it is your will to do” and not wander away into thoughts of “WHY – Lord – why do bad things happen to good people?”

This is difficult for us  because the armature of prayer is in the surrender.

The power comes from a realization that we are facing in such times, a situation that we cannot control, that our friends cannot control, and rather than worry and stress, we release the fear. We turn loose of the trepidation. We let go of all the questions about “why did this happen?” The answer becomes insignificant while in the midst of the battle. Instead,

We simply … pray.

In this prayer, I’ve left two large parenthetical sections blank into which you can insert the specifics of what (or who) you are praying for, and why.  The goal here is not to find the near-impossible miracle of turning all things right, but instead of finding the everyday miracle of seeking the presence of the Maker to stand with us, and give us ALL the strength and courage to face tough times ahead.

A Prayer…..

Christ Jesus,

We would like to stay close to you.

And to entrust to you those
who are going through suffering,
and trusting us.

We pray for the victims of
(                                                       ).

We pray for those who are close to us
and living with
(                                                        ).

And ask for them all,
your presence,
full of compassion.

- Amen

Keep the faith!