“Are
not two sparrows sold for a small coin? Yet not one of them falls to the ground
without your Father's knowledge. Even all the hairs of your head are counted.
So do not be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows.” Mt 26:29-31
Jesus hears
the prayers of the heart and never fails to reassure us. He knows how easily we
give in to doubt and fear. He promises that He and the Father know and share
our littlest concerns and our greatest pains. Especially during life’s most
difficult times, entrust your cause to the Lord with faith.
When my mother
became seriously ill, I prayed fervently for her. I asked God to hold her in
the palm of His hand, to protect her and keep her safe. But over the next few
years, she went from bad to worse, ending up in a nursing home after suffering
several small strokes and multiple health problems. As she got worse, I
continued to pray but sometimes wondered why my prayer – as I envisioned it –
was not granted and why she had to suffer so much.
Good things happened during that time, too. The nursing home staff was wonderful, and their professional care relieved my father of being her “nurse,” allowing the two to rekindle their relationship. My father spent a lot of time visiting. And, although my father was not a practicing Catholic during that time, he made sure she received the Sacrament of Anointing near the end of her life. When she died, he was beside her, holding her hand.
For her
funeral, we chose some traditional songs, including a favorite of mine, “On
Eagle’s Wings.” Although I’d heard it many times, I guess I hadn’t really paid
attention to all the words, which are based on Psalm 91. As it played at the
funeral, the words of the chorus broke through my sadness: “And He will raise
you up, on eagle’s wings… and hold you in the palm of His hand…” and I knew
that God really had heard my prayer and had always been there, holding her
gently in His hand, until the moment He lifted her up to Himself.
And He will
raise you up on eagle's wings,
Bear you on
the breath of dawn,
Make you to
shine like the sun,
And hold you
in the palm of His Hand.
You need not
fear the terror of the night,
Nor the arrow
that flies by day,
Though
thousands fall about you,
Near you it
shall not come.
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