My Pain and Your Pain

This morning I had an insight that I want to share with you. I realized a selfishness in me I had not seen before.

Regularly I pray for someone dear to me who is angry, judgemental, paranoid and estranged. I pray for the Love and Light of God to envelop him and heal him, restoring him and setting him free from the darkness. I feel emotional pain deeply because of the situation.

This morning I realized that there are many who have such pain and sorrow in their hearts and many who live in dark and fearful corners of their minds. Of course, this is obvious to us all at some level. But, my realization is that it is more appropriate for me to pray for all, not just my tiny corner. In fact, we are all family, offspring of God. We share this life, this planet, this air, this water, this joy and this pain.

Luke told a story of a rich man who did not help the man at the gate, covered by sores which dogs licked (it was thought long ago that dog saliva was healing). In the after life, the man at the gate with the sores is held in the bosom of Abraham, while the rich man is in torment out of reach, but not out of sight. He wants someone to go to his brothers to warn them so they can avoid such a fate.

This is the same as my realization this morning. The rich man was concerned for his immediate family, not for the suffering of humankind. While I have been concerned since childhood for others, I have not prayed as deeply for them as I have for my estranged love one. Let's pray together.

Lord, Divine Presence, may Your Love and Light engulf, restore and lift all those suffering from broken relationships. May Your comfort soothe the wounded. May Your Wisdom guide the lost. May the experience of You break through the static and be fully known. For all of my brothers and sisters, I lift this prayer to You, asking in the name of Christ and sealing it with the ancient seal, Amen Amen and Amen