spiritual life

Praying like it is cancer

JOY journal

“Bad news should always come after lunch.. first thing in the morning everything left a bruise.” Stephen King, American novelist

A mess, for sure. But, where there’s life, there’s hope.

Some things I’d really rather not know. But, try as I might to keep bad news at bay, information just keeps rolling in. For at least a year, this has primarily meant hearing that this one or that one has gotten themselves into a situation.

The situations haven’t been good ones, of course. They’ve been the kind of muddy, tar-like messes that suck not only one individual in, but several of those around them. Sorrow just everywhere.

Hearing yet another piece of such news the other day, I caught myself doing an internal “du-du-duh-duh-duh — another one bites but the dust.” It was a moment of hopelessness. This one. This time. It was just too bad.

Then that God voice that speaks so often in our hearts chimed in. “What would you do if it was cancer?”

That gave me pause. I knew the answer. If the person trapped in spiritual sin was instead diagnosed with physical cancer, I would pray. I would pray until he was healed or dead.

So, I am.

Published by JOY journal

After a long career writing for local newspapers — and, on rare occasions, for publications such as The Washington Post — Nora's word life is now focused on blogging and occasional writing projects of special interest. Also the author of several books, Nora lives in Appalachia with her husband and a goodish dog named Finn, who is delighted whenever the family's two adult daughters are home from college.

16 thoughts on “Praying like it is cancer”

  3. Nora, thank you for sharing this strikingly vital word. Anything that leads to death (spiritual or physical) deserves our prayerful attention. I pray His peace, perseverance, and comfort for you as well, while you walk through these valleys with loved ones. ♥

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    1. Thanks, Munna Sara! It’s not just you who feels weak. There’s just a lot of things we cannot fix — and wouldn’t really know how to fix if we could. The older I get, the more I look to God. “Help!” is always a good prayer. 🙂

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