Prayer requests

This verse has been in my thoughts lately as I have been praying with a dear friend.

Precious in the sight of the Lord
    is the death of his faithful servants. (Psalm 116:15, NIV)

Here is another translation that helps us:

The Lord cares deeply
    when his loved ones die. (Psalm 116:15, NLT)

God's Word gives us comfort as we face death. Whether our own, or the imminent death of a loved one, we see in this psalm that God cares.....

Our hearts may be breaking. We may be crushed in spirit, but God promises that He will be close to the broken hearted and that we can count on Him to save us when our spirits are crumpled.

His presence and help will be very present; He can be felt tangibly by each one of us. 

We cannot ease the pain of those who grieve, so we approach our Savior. 

We ask that as they walk through the valley of the shades of death, that they would sense they are not alone. He is walking with them as He has promised.

We ask, too, that fear would not take root in their hearts, but instead the peace of Heaven will flood their souls. Help them to "see" in their mind's eye that their loved one is resting in God's arms. 

We can remind our grieving friends that He treasures each tear they shed and that He promises to work out all things for good. That sounds so foreign to us when we are hurting, but it's true and right. Let's pray with our friends that somehow in His wisdom and compassion, God will allow great things to come of the tragedies in our lives. That perhaps others will be drawn to Him and to His love so that they can receive His salvation.

This earth is not all there is; there is an eternity ahead that we can spend with Him and with our loved ones who believe.

Trust Him.

Praise Him.

Experience His peace and His love.

Let's pray.