Thursday, December 7, 2023

Heal me, O Lord, and I shall be healed.  Jeremiah 17:14

For I will restore health to you, and your wounds I will heal, says the Lord.  Jeremiah 30:17

Is anyone among you suffering?  Let him pray.  James 5:13

Illustration by Oliver Bayer, age 9

“Read about an octopus?  That doesn’t sound like a book I would enjoy!”  Those were words from one of my neighbors. But…the debut novel, Remarkably Bright Creatures, by Shelby Van Pelt is much more than a story about Marcellus, an octopus who resides in an aquarium. It is a beautiful novel about the emotional healing of two individuals – a young man, who was abandoned as a child by his mother, and an older woman, who still grieves the loss of her husband and son. Through a bit of nudging by the intelligent and kindhearted Marcellus, both characters discover that healing can occur when a connection is eventually established.

In Mary Kay Andrew’s newest Christmas read, Bright Lights, Big Christmas, an elderly man named Heinz, who has no family, goes missing in New York City. Kerry and Heinz’s neighbors never abandon their quest to find and ultimately care for him.  It is a sweet story of the true meaning of human kindness and connection in the healing process.  In both of these stories I have shared, with time, treasured relationships developed.

We know God watches over our entire being….body, soul, and spirit. As Christians we have a role within community and family to care and tend to those who need physical, emotional, or spiritual healing. This Christmas, as I pray to our Lord to support and look after those who are in various types of pain, I hope to be more like Marcellus and Kerry, uniting with individuals who may need loving help in their journeys to heal.

Heavenly Father, we pray for your healing and your grace. We need to be reminded that your work is constant and powerful on behalf of those who require physical, emotional, or spiritual restoration. Lead us now, as a community of Christians, to those who need our assistance in healing during this Advent season.  Amen

Kathy Paquette

Kathy leads SMPC’s Food for Thought monthly book group.  All are welcome!  Contact Kathy for reading list, dates, and times.

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