Revival

Revival

I Kings 17:17-24

The Lord listened to the voice of Elijah, the life of the child came back to him again, and he revived.  v. 22

     We are again reminded that God is on the side of life.  In the second creation story in Genesis 2 God breathes the breath of life into the lump of clay from which humans come.  Humanity is one with all creation and yet at the same time vivified, given life.  God is author, sustainer, guarantor of Life and Health and Wholeness.

     In this story from 1 Kings, God worked through Elijah to save the life of this widow of Zarephath and her Son.  Though their resources are scarce, God does provide, and they survive the drought.  But now…now the son is so ill he has “no breath in him.”  The life force has escaped.

      The widow blames herself and even Elijah for showing up to remind her of “her sin.”  One of the reasons to visit the sick is to remind that person that it’s not necessarily their fault when sickness invades a body.  Yes, some illnesses are the result of a careless attitude toward our bodies and an abuse of our bodies.  However, often these illnesses are random or part of an aging process or the result of outside forces acting on our physical natures.

      We visit, also, to comfort people with the news that God is present even on the darkest days.  Sick people can feel abandoned to the vagaries of life or feel the hopelessness of illness, feel as if they’ll never feel better.  We can offer assurance that God is present and assurance that God wants them to be well.

      Most often we cannot come offering a cure for what ails the sick person, but we can offer healing—a proclamation that God hears prayer, that even in their illness people are valued and included.  So often an illness isolates, but God uses these moments to connect.

      When the HIV-AIDS epidemic first broke out, many people were afraid of the disease.  They avoided people with the disease at all costs.  It took the bravery, knowledge, and empathy of a few people to show that this illness wasn’t something to fear.  Their actions didn’t cure but did bring healing.  We’re living through the fears of the present pandemic.  We distance ourselves physically from each other.  How much more in these times do we need to remember God is present in these times too and is on the side of life.

Pray:  O God the giver of health and wholeness, you grieve the infirmities and diseases that attack us and make us ill.  We give thanks for  the gifts of medicine and therapies that work with our bodies to  return us to wholeness and health. May we see you in those who are sick and in need. We pray for healing even when there is no cure.  Amen

Fast:  By taking time to breathe deeply

Act:   In days of quarantine make a phone call or write a letter or card 

to someone in the hospital or nursing home.

                        OR set aside $1 for ELCA World Hunger medical projects.