Journal of Sacred Work

 
Three different friends have come to me recently with news of how cancer has touched their lives. In each case, one of the things I have said is, "You will be in my prayers." I know what that means for me, but what does it mean for you?
   One former colleague, a Methodist who converted to Catholicism, used to carry with him a long list of people he was praying for. Periodically, he would point out to me that I was on his list. I sometimes wondered what that meant, but I never asked him. Sometimes, we were competitors. During that time, was he praying that God would give him a victory or that I would see things his way? Or was he praying that God would bring Love and peace into my life?  Does it matter either way?
   One of our most troubling tendencies, as humans, is our practice of passing judgment. I wonder if this tendency creeps into our prayers? As I have raised before, do fans at football games pray for the victory of one over the other, thus concluding that the "other" is somehow bad and not deserving of victory?
   For caregivers inclined to prayer, the question becomes how we pray for others, as well as how we approach God personally. This intensely individual question is, of course, determined by how we think about God. If God is a judging and terrifying image to us, that will create one kind of supplication. If God is Love, it creates another kind of prayer.
   Most of King David’s Psalms expressed gratitude to God…

   If we ask ourselves, what is holy, good and sacred in this world, how would we answer? Our answer defines our view of God.
    This leads to some of the intriguing studies, reported by wonderful folks like Larry Dossey, M.D., that suggest that patients who are prayed over do "better," with respect to their illness. This notion is both encouraging and perplexing. If God is Love, than why would an innocent patient be "punished" for lack of prayers?
   Perhaps the answer, for us, lies in, for lack of a better word, the idea of energy. Love represents what is good in the world. Our prayers may bring us closer to this field of energy. As we, and those we pray for, draw closer to Love, healing may occur.
   It is with this thought in my heart that I offer prayers of Love for you today and everyday. How do you, as a caregiver, express your prayers for Love?

-Erie Chapman