We have our son and his family living with us during these pandemic days. Their little 3-year-old son Nelson and his 9-month-old brother Linden are my daily buddies. Linden can now scooch in a commando crawl and reach just about any destination he sets off for. Nelson is gobbling up vocabulary and spitting words out with panache. After a recent rhyming fest he announced “I am prolific with poetry.”
Watch out world.
Nelson also has occasion to say the blessings on the food at our communal meals. He has a little intro he always uses: “Heavenly Father, thank you for blessings. Thank you for God….”
Even his parents aren’t sure where he came up with that. It’s pretty all encompassing, isn’t it? It reminds me of a prayer Mr. Rogers (of “Neighborhood” fame) taught folks. “It’s easy,” he said. “Just three little words: “Thank you, God.”
Right now our family has another urgent reason to pray. While I write this, my 39-year-old nephew Tim in Chicago is in surgery for recently detected and diagnosed colon cancer. We will know more about the scope of the disease and its prognosis over the next few days.
This triggers memories of when my husband (52 at the time) was diagnosed with a rare, “beyond stage” advanced abdominal cancer that goes by its initials: PMP. All of us were living a prayer during that period. I remember being very forthright with God, telling him up front what I wanted (that Chris would survive and be healthy again) but that like Jesus in Gethsemane I prayed for “not my will but thy will” to be done. Thankfully, Chris is doing very well, despite a wonky gut.
I’m praying versions of that again now. “Oh Great and Eternal God – take away this disease and heal Tim. Give his doctors wisdom, good instincts and sound minds in planning treatment. May his surgeons have skilled hands and full attention to their task in this very moment. May the medications given be appropriate and useful. May his wife and young daughter be buoyed and strengthened and accompanied by angels in many forms….”
Surely in this nightmare time of pandemic all of us wrestle for help. And if COVID hasn’t touched your life, other grim circumstances or diagnoses may have – or will. We don’t have to extend our circle far to share tales of close calls with desperate or urgent crises. Contemplate those times when you – frightened and on the brink – tried to squeeze all the power you could from petitionary prayer. What helped you? What lessons did you learn?
Elder Bednar shared wisdom he learned from Elder Neal A. Maxwell, an apostle who died of leukemia in 2004 after an 8 year battle with the disease. When Elder Bednar asked him about lessons he learned from his illness, Elder Maxwell replied, “I have learned that not shrinking is more important than surviving.”
Can we align ourselves with “not shrinking” as a life principle?
Let me also add that I am NOT a believer in the “everything happens for a reason” philosophy. God is no marionette master. This _______ (fill in the in blank calamity) happened because it’s just part of living in a mortal world, not because the Grand Puppeteer had a whim to teach you a lesson or because He had a bet going on with the Devil. (So sorry for your loss, Job.)
So, will you join me in praying that my fine nephew will continue to “learn, live and become”? I’m clinging to that perspective not just for Tim but for myself and all of us who do, have and will face difficult times.
I am still boldly on record with God that I want Tim to survive and thrive and live an abundant, long, and healthy life here on this earth with us. I want him to listen to his hip-hop. I want him to romp with his family and dogs. I want him to give me one of his shy smiles while he’s carrying his daughter on his shoulders. If his revamped gut allows it, I want him to enjoy as much Chicago pizza as he wants whenever he wants. I want him to “live, learn and become” for many, many more years.
With all that clear to my Maker, I, too, plan to focus on living, learning and becoming. That way I can train my life to echo Nelson’s simple prayer: “Thank you for blessings. Thank you for God.”
PS:
Update on Tim: The doctor says the “surgery went well.” Not sure what that means exactly, but that’s hopeful news.
Linda,
This is just what I needed today. I have a family member facing possible blindness. Surgery is next week and my prayers have never been more earnest. I will be honest in saying that it frightens me a bit at just how much I need prayer right now. But I am determined not to “shrink”, but rather to thank God do whatever is needed to be of help in my family.??
Thanks for your comment, Kirsten. I'll add you and your suffering family member to my thoughts and prayers, too. We're all in this mortality thing together. I have found that knowing we're not bearing our anxieties alone really helps.