Dear Family and Friends,
Please take a moment to pray with us.
Father,
Sue has had most of her negative side effects subside as the result of some different medication being prescribed for her by the oncologist. This outcome has had a positive effect on reducing my fear for Sue. It is even easier to believe that the cancer is on its way out.
A Prayer for Hope
Father God,
Mother God,
Glimmers of hope
Break through the darkness
There will come a day
Of life
Of joy
Of peace
Of love
Of justice
Of brotherhood.
Hearts full,
We wait
In the light.
Esperanza.
In Jesus’ name.
Amen.
Peace,
Tom
Dear Family and Friends,
Please take a moment to pray with us. 
Father,
I have been thinking of my Aunt in the days since her death. It is a blessing to have known her. It is good to recall the love shared. As Aunt Mary survived my mother by 15 years, being around her was a reminder of a connection to my mom, to a shared history of memories of a family’s life.
A Prayer of Reflection on the Life of My Aunt
I grieve.
But this is good.
Death is the natural culmination of life.
The circle is complete.
Accepting all emotions and
phases of life is the natural order.
The sun rises.
The sun sets.
It is absurd
to curse the darkness of the night,
because it filled its assignment
as part of the Divine Order.
All Life is precious.
Every aspect of life is treasured,
Even the parting from a life well-lived.
All is well.
In Jesus’ name.
Amen.
Peace,
Tom
Dear Family and Friends,
Please take a moment to pray with us.
Father,
Several months ago I had prayed about a woman, Amy, who was planning to donate a kidney to someone whose kidney had failed. Yesterday was the day of the surgery. I have read emails that have reported that she is recovering well.
A Prayer for a Kidney Donor
Father God,
Mother God,
I imagine You
Feeling a sense of pride
For Your daughter Amy.
She has followed
The model of Jesus,
Literally giving of herself,
To help another in need.
Bless the giver
Who does not hold back,
Listening to the Divine whispers
Of love and service,
Who acts despite her fear.
Free her from pain,
Ease her recovery,
Restore her to full health.
Bless the gift,
That it may ever serve
To save the one
For whom it was given.
Bless the recipient,
Forever united with the giver,
May she live in health,
Sharing the love given to her.
In Jesus’ name.
Amen.
Peace,
Tom
Dear Family and Friends,
Please take a moment to pray with us.
Father,
My Aunt Mary died yesterday. She was my godmother. Her death was unexpected, and yet it is hard to say that when a person is 79. She coped with a bad back and emphysema in recent years. Still, it seems that I’ve come to expect that a person has many hospital stays and frequent doctor’s appointments as the years add up, as a predictor of the end of life. That hadn’t been the case with my Aunt. While I have one remaining aunt who lives in Florida, she rarely makes it back to Cincinnati. It feels that this is the end of the generation of my parents. It is an orphaned feeling, with grandparents, parents, aunts and uncles all having passed on. It is a changing of the guard, an event to mark the passing of time, and the generation. I guess I am unofficially “old”.
A Prayer on the Death of My Aunt
Mother God,
Father God,
Welcome my aunt
Into Your kingdom.
Let her enjoy the reward of a Christian life,
To spend eternity
In endless praise
Surrounded and reunited
With lost loved ones.
Bring peace to those who remain,
Grieving the loss
Of their mother, grandmother, aunt, and friend.
Let them rejoice
At Jesus’ victory over death
And the neverending gift
Of heaven.
In Jesus’ name.
Amen.
Peace,
Tom
Dear Family and Friends,
Please take a moment to pray with us.
Father,
Sue met with a group of women that she gathers with for prayer each week. It was a special day. One of her group is having surgery on Thursday in order to donate a kidney for a person that she has been matched with. The group had a special prayer service to anoint Amy as she takes this big step. With Sue’s commencement of chemotherapy and radiation, the women also anointed her. Special prayers were spoken for each. It was a moving ceremony to Sue, especially since it involved women whom she loves deeply.
A Prayer of Thanks for Praying Women
Father God,
Mother God,
We are grateful
For the presence of friends
To love us
Support us
Pray for us
Pray with us
Laugh with us
Cry with us
Anoint us
Sit with us in silence
Share our burdens, and
Share Christ with us.
For Sue,
These are the sisters of tribulation
The daughters of crisis.
They are present
When dark clouds hover.
Their love lifts one up
To the Mystical Christ,
The Source of Love
Healing,
Hope,
Filling her with
Humility and peace.
In Jesus’ name.
Amen.
Peace,
Tom
Dear Family and Friends,
Please take a moment to pray with us.
Father,
Nausea!
It hit Sue for the first time on Saturday and remained with her Sunday. She described it as different from nausea that she has had in the past. It is in her chest, more in the area where she has been treated with radiation. We have tried to avoid cooking food with strong aromas so that it doesn’t bring on a wave of sickness. Is this the beginning of six more weeks of nausea and vomiting? Only time will tell.
A Prayer for the Absence of Chemotherapy Side Effects
Father God
Mother God
Guide us through
The darkness of the unknown
With its heightened imagined fears.
Let us take Your hand
As You lead us one day at a time,
One step at a time.
One second at a time.
Lead Sue to health.
Let her believe in all Your promises
The redemptive power of suffering,
And hope
that health and remission await her.
Help our family care for Sue
When she is in discomfort.
Let us know the right things
To do,
To say,
To let her know that she is loved.
By us
By You.
By many.
In Jesus’ name.
Amen.
Peace,
Tom
Dear Family and Friends,
Please take a moment to pray with us.
Father,
I think that you hold a special place for the prayers of children. I share these prayers from Johnny and Joy.
Dear God,
Help mom get better.
Let her dream of the angels.
Be with her
And heal her.
I love You.
Joy
Tender Shepherd
Watch over my mom,
Help her feel better.
John
A Prayer of Children for Their Mom with Cancer
The tender innocence
Of children
Reaches beyond
The bounds of earth.
Words sent heavenward
Reach the ear of God
Opening a channel
For His Love to enter us.
Let Love heal all of us,
Of Cancer,
Fear,
Doubt,
Uncertainty,
Stress,
Hopelessness,
Sickness,
Adverse treatment side effects.
Let Love transform us
Making us instruments of peace
In this crucible of suffering.
In Jesus’ name.
Amen.
Peace,
Tom
Dear Family and Friends,
Please take a moment to pray with us.
Father,
Our son had been laid off in December and had been in search of a new job. He was able to land a new job this week and needed reliable transportation so that he could get to his new job on Monday. We went out today and arranged for him to lease a car from an auto dealership where we had purchased our cars. In arranging the financing we met with Rick, the Finance Manager. He had remembered me from our visits there in the past when we were accompanied by John, with his noticeable facial burns sars. He asked how my wife was and I told him, “Not so good. After 18 years, she had a recurrence of cancer.” The news struck him. He told me that his wife, too, had breast cancer five years ago. He t
old me to give her a hug from him, and that he would be praying for her. He also confided in me that after meeting us with John years ago, he had made a point about donating to organizations that helped to fund surgeries for children with facial disfigurements, like cleft lip/palate. It brought a smile to my face to know that in some small way our meeting might have influenced someone to take a step to help another child. It made me feel connected to all of my brothers and sisters around the globe.
A Prayer of Thanks for an Unexpected Surprise
Father God,
Mother God,
Amazed I am
To find the tapestry of my life
Unfold,
Allowing me to see
the growth of seeds of compassion,
unknowingly planted,
and blossoming with Your whisper.
Thank You for placing Rick in my path today,
Bringing us together,
Sharing a connection
Of our mutual experience of wives
Living beyond, and
Living with cancer.
Thank You for the surprise,
That in a moment of doubt,
You send me simple signs
That I am not alone this day.
You are with my family
When we arise in the morning
Through our daily chores and routine
And watch us through our nightly rest.
You guard us
As a watchful loving parent.
Let me not forget
Your fountain of Love,
Neverending,
Refreshing my soul,
Leading me home.
In Jesus’ name.
Amen.
Peace,
Tom
Dear Family and Friends,
Please take a moment to pray with us.
Father,
Three down and thirty to go! 
Sue had her third radiation treatment today. She will continue receiving treatments Monday through Friday for the next six weeks. She is also having chemotherapy, taking an orally administered medication. There have been no side effects at this point, but I suspect that there is a cumulative effect of these treatments. For now, I am grateful that the start of her treatment has been absent of side effects.
I met with a group of men for prayer this morning before work. One said that a person like Sue, who is compassionate, giving, and unselfish, is an inspiration through suffering. Reacting with faith through the treatment process is a witness to observers. I haven’t thought about that. I am only paying attention to today. Maybe I’m just too scared to look down the road very far, afraid of what I might see. Still, there is value in living in the present and being grateful for the beauty of this single day.
A Prayer of Gratitude for the Gift of Today
Father God,
Mother God,
I don’t know what lies ahead,
For Sue,
For me,
For our children.
For all I know
I may be the poster child for Denial
Living obliviously through
Sue’s life-threatening diagnosis.
Watching her live the days of this week
Gives me courage.
She is rooted in the beauty of today,
Enjoying our children,
And playing with our grandson,
Savoring every moment
Of this gift of life.
Let us treasure these simple moments.
Let Joy surround us.
Let us radiate Joy.
In Jesus’ name.
Amen.
Peace,
Tom
A Prayer on the First Day of Chemotherapy and Radiation
Father God,
Mother God,
You care for us in special ways.
Today you gave Sue an image
To visualize during her treatment.
It was not the ultimate battle
Of the forces of good vs. those of evil.
This was not Armageddon,
But a tale of Snow White and the Seven Dwarves,
Grumpy and Dopey,
Laden with mining tools.
Dug for the cancer cells,
Carrying them away,
To the tune of “Hi-Ho, Hi-Ho”.
May these whimsical images
Gladden and lighten Sue’s heart,
Fill her with peace,
Bringing her closer to You
On her road to remission.
May You strike fear from our hearts,
Helping us to grasp this opportunity
To allow Your Power to manifest itself
In our tiny lives,
And our trust in You to grow
Beyond measure or expectation.
In Jesus’ name.
Amen.
Peace,
Tom
