A Pastor’s Letter of Prayer for An Aging, Dying Saint
Dear Friend,
What do I pray for an aging saint, longing for heaven above?
What do I pray for this soul on earth, one I so dearly love?
I would pray this…
First, I would pray that you see your situation for what it is.
You could spend your final days, weeks, months, and even years obsessed with diagnoses, remedies, and a myriad of other terms. I know that the hospital is never home, and home is with the Great Physician above. But realize this—for all you’ll learn about the body, its health, and some cures—we only live so long. Moses knew it long ago—“The years of our life are seventy, or even by reason of strength eighty” (Psalm 90:10). At some point, our appointment with death will come (Hebrews 9:27). Do not be surprised, whether decline is gradual or sudden.
Second, I would pray that you see beyond your present situation.
Our Lord Jesus Christ died, arose, and lives in a glorious, glorified body. His is the prototype for what you’ll have. In fact, He Himself “will transform our lowly body to be like His glorious body, by the power that enables Him to even to subject all things to Himself” (Philippians 3:21). So, in one venue, Christ uses His power to uphold all things. In another and future venue, He will focus that infinite and overwhelming power squarely on you to obliterate every malady, spiritual and physical, in order for you to be like Him. See beyond the present and hope for what will come. Join Paul to proclaim, “I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us…. the redemption of our bodies” (Romans 8:18, 23).
Third, I would pray that you would see yourself as a suffering servant.
Yes, that title right there—the Suffering Servant—belongs properly to Christ. The Father called Him “My Servant” who bore the iniquity of us all (Isaiah 52:13–53:12). But follow His example as you remember His ministry just before death. Even in His sufferings, from the thorns to saying “I thirst” (John 19:28), He served many from the cross. On His way there, He warned the weeping women that greater trials would come (Luke 23:28–31). As He hung and bled, He prayed for the lost to know forgiveness, those who sinned against Him (Luke 23:34). He encouraged a dying man with Paradise above (Luke 23:43), and He cared for his aging mother by charging John to take her in (John 19:26–27). Like Jesus, you, too, can minister words to others, pray your words to God, and serve in many other ways. Do not be so consumed with your difficulties that you miss the ministry that remains. To die is gain, yes, but while you live and even suffer, serve and live for the Christ who you soon so gladly join (Philippians 1:21).
So, my dear aging saint, my beloved dying saint, see your situation for what it is. The wages of sin are death. But see beyond your situation. Your Savior awaits, and glory will be yours. But until then, be a suffering servant, serving until the end. And then, your greatest days will have only just begun.
With all the love that Christ can show through me who loves you so,
Your Pastor
—
David Huffstutler is the pastor of First Baptist Church in Rockford, IL. He blogs here, where this article first appeared. It is republished here by permission.
Image by bookdragon from Pixabay