And Be Thankful!
Today’s Verse:
Colossians 3:15 ESV
Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful.
On Monday at the cancer center, I spoke with a 19-year-old who had just started her treatment for lymphatic cancer. “Hey, you’re copying me,” I said after she told me. Explaining my story of throat to lymphatic cancer, I said I was glad to meet someone who could say with me that “cancer sucks.” As with all cancer patients, we go from worry to being scared to being sick from the treatments and then feeling terrible all the time. The only advice I gave her was to be grateful for all the people around you, for they don’t know what to do to help. So be thankful for their endless questions of “How are you feeling?” and “Do you need anything?” And always make time to pray.
For me, praying during chemotherapy was important. I didn’t watch television or stream videos. I prayed when the nurses finished hooking me up to the latest bag of yuck. Chemo is scary and makes you feel like you’ve been beaten up. But in prayer, I thanked God for the people He set in my life to be a concerned helper. Whether it is family or friends, nurses or members of my congregations, they all help in small or big ways.
Being grateful to God for all He’s given us should be an easy daily task. He’s sent us Jesus, His Son and Savior. God gave us His Holy Spirit in Holy Baptism, who helps guide our lives (if we listen). Our Father showers us with His blessings each day, even when we are struggling. He loves us beyond measure. So, this Wednesday, let us thank our Lord for all He’s given.
Prayers
A Prayer for Today:
Father in heaven, I thank You for this new day, a gift of your grace. I am grateful for the breath in my lungs, the warmth of the sun, and the love surrounding me. Help me see Your hand in all things, big and small. May our gratitude overflow into acts of kindness and service today. In Jesus’ name, I pray.Amen.
Apostles’ Creed:
I believe in God, the Father Almighty, maker of heaven and earth.
And in Jesus Christ, His only Son, our Lord, who was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died and was buried. He descended into hell. The third day He rose again from the dead. He ascended into heaven and sits at the right hand of God the Father Almighty. From thence He will come to judge the living and the dead.
I believe in the Holy Spirit, the holy Christian Church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and the life everlasting. Amen.
The Lord’s Prayer:
Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be Thy name, Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven; give us this day our daily bread; and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us; and lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For Thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever and ever. Amen.
Luther’s Morning Prayer:
I thank You, my heavenly Father, through Jesus Christ, Your dear Son, that You have kept me this night from all harm and danger; and I pray that You would keep me this day also from sin and every evil, that all my doings and life may please You. For into Your hands, I commend myself, my body and soul, and all things. Let Your holy angel be with me, that the evil foe may have no power over me. Amen.
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