My Prayer

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A PRAYER FOR THE SICK AND INFIRMED

As our earthy clothing becomes torn and tattered
in the rough and tumble
so it goes with our bodies.
Why is this Lord we ask?

Some of us, we suffer.
Why us we ask?
Is this fair we ask?
Please Lord open our eyes and our ears.

Some die before others.
And whose turn is next?
Who sets this clock?
Please Lord open us to understanding,

Why are some of us chosen for this journey
of the “The Sick and Infirmed.”
What is our purpose now?
We wrestle to make sense of our suffering, of the uncertainty.
Give us a hint Lord.

We know that you are the Wellspring of Mercy.
This mercy is what ultimately will bring us to peace.
In the shelter of this peace we are hoping
some of the answers will appear.

May the tangles in our minds be loosened, our knots untied.
May the knowing of your bigger picture bridge over
our times of personal smallness.

We are grateful.
We are hopeful.
Give us strength.
Lead us through.

All in the name of our Savior. Amen.

Phil Volker 5/2/19 National Day of Prayer

19 thoughts on “My Prayer”

  1. One very POWERFUL Prayer that has emerged from a very caring HEART.

    God Bless.

    1. Nicely crafted, Phil. Anxious to see you again soon on Vashon with our crazy bunch, 4 even being Marines! A gal friend leaves next month to walk 7 days on Camino with her three grandkids. She is very excited.
      Wishing you always the best. Semper Fi. Kenny

  2. Felipe, amigo! Such a powerful, personal, wonderful prayer! Your many years of writing to us now are certainly bearing good fruit. You have written a marvelous prayer that will resonate to the very hearts of those whose health is in peril. Thank you for your efforts that have produced this eloquence. Even those who have never had the pleasure and privilege of knowing you personally will recognize the depth of this prayer.

  3. Such a very beautiful poem. Deep in the asking and in the opening. Bless you Felipe.

  4. Thank you so much for posting!!
    It was so beautiful to hear you speak it.
    Heartfelt to read it.
    Have a great day.
    We are all blessed knowing you!

  5. This is beautiful, Phil! Thanks for sharing! I am making a copy of this to share with others. God Bless You! I am so thankful for your wisdom and inspirational spirit.

  6. Such a beautiful prayer Felipe, no one in my heart deserves it more than you. I recited it this morning with you in my mind. Thank you for walking in the mud with me.

    1. Catherine, you old mud walker you. Well, glad you like the poem, the prayer. I was thinking about the Laments in the Psalms while I worked on it. See you tomorrow. Jessika going to “the eight”. Felipé.x

  7. Phil-
    Your prayer is beautiful and sincere and wonderful. I hold you in my heart, always. Your empathy, courage and openheartedness are inspiring. Thank you for sharing the prayer and the mindfulness that went into it is obvious. The prayer rings of Psalm 46:10.

    1. Steve-O ~ oh, old friend of mine. Thank you for the kind words. Let me look up Ps 46:10. The Psalms are a storehouse of all of what it is to be human. I was doing some work on the Laments recently. I learn that all my personal bitches and moans have all been been artfully expressed thousands of years ago there. There is something comforting about that. Felipé.

      1. Steve-O ~ That is a great one. Think that is not the right chapter and verse though. But I get the idea. Thanks, Felipé.

        1. Steve-O ~ a little glitchy thing appears to be happening. I see the web version of the Catholic Bible puts it in verse 10 and the paper version puts it in verse 11. And I started out in my paraphrase version called “The Message” and I got:

          10 “Step out of the traffic! Take a long
          loving look at me, your High God,
          above politics, above everything.”

          That didn’t seem to fit at first for me but that is it in modern terms. So, a little hiccup. Thanks, Felipé.

  8. Profound, poetic prayer of questioning and acceptance coming from the inside. I plan to pray it every day–for you, Phil, and for me.

    1. Henriette ~ thank you so much for all your support. Coming from the inside is what I was shooting for there, right. Happy that you are here with us at Caminoheads. Felipé.x

  9. Dear Phil, That is a beautiful prayer. Eat. Cancer is a catabolic state.
    Ask Dr. Gold for his nutritional recommendations in the face of weight loss.
    I would be eating high caloric foods and ensure. It couldn’t hurt.

    1. Jim ~ great, you made it to the comments. Right Ensure, I forgot about that. OK, thanks. Was raking and hoeing today trying to keep ahead of the weeds, mostly grass it is. And I got help for a while from a friend. Most of the corn is an inch or two. Have some gaps so I’ll move some plants around a little and fill them in. Good to see you and Gloria again. Felipé.

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