A Prayer When the Light Becomes Night
Chatting with a friend recently, I found myself thinking back on those first years after diagnosis—it was a season of confusion and medical complexity, full of conflicting narratives that have taken many years to unravel. But through our uncertainty and fear, God has been weaving His own threads of certainty and promise into the tapestry of our lives together as a family. How tenderly He has shown us that it’s His love and His guidance we can count on, when every other foundation crumbles.
“Where can I go from your Spirit?
Where can I flee from your presence?
If I go up to the heavens, you are there;
if I make my bed in the depths, you are there.
If I rise on the wings of the dawn,
if I settle on the far side of the sea,
even there your hand will guide me,
your right hand will hold me fast.
If I say, “Surely the darkness will hide me
and the light become night around me,”
even the darkness will not be dark to you;
the night will shine like the day,
for darkness is as light to you.”
Prayer Reflection on Psalm 139
As a parent, I’ll never forget how I felt, holding our 3 year old daughter’s little shoulders, saying her name, willing her to see me while she looked right through me. Since her regression, I felt like she had gone where I could not follow—so how could I find her? How could I reach her? And how could I ever bring her back to us? I felt powerless—helpless to help the one I loved—and deeply afraid.
In one of my scariest seasons, the Psalmist gently reminded me that—while I might be powerless to help—our powerful, loving God was present with her, and with me too. The One who holds all things was holding us together. There is no place beyond His power and presence—a truth the Psalmist knew well.
More than a decade later, God has graciously restored our connection with our daughter, and I am continuing to learn the practice of entrusting all things to Him, even in times of loss and uncertainty. He is faithful. I’m so thankful we have this scripture to steady us when the ground we’ve been standing on begins to give way, and to help us remember, wherever we are, His right hand holds us fast.
Making It Personal
As you read the words below, allow the Spirit to remind you of God’s tender and compassionate love for you and your loved ones, His presence, and His perfect power, remembering there is no place where you are beyond the reach of His love. As you and your family are held in God’s loving gaze, I invite you to pray this scripture, writing and reciting your loved one’s name(s) in the blank spaces, welcoming the images this scripture brings to mind of God’s powerful, loving attention and faithfulness to you and your loved ones.
“Where can _______________ go from your Spirit?
Where can _______________flee from your presence?
If they go up to the heavens, you are there;
if they make their bed in the depths, you are
there.
If they rise on the wings of the dawn,
if they settle on the far side of the sea,
even there your hand will guide _______________,
your right hand will hold them fast.
If I say, “Surely the darkness will hide________________
and the light become night around them,”
even the darkness will not be dark to you;
the night will shine like the day,
for darkness is as light to you.”
As you read or speak these personalized words, consider if there is a phrase that seems especially written for your circumstance. God is as close as breath. Perhaps you might accept the invitation to pray this phrase as you breathe, inhaling deeply, and exhaling slowly, as you focus on God’s closeness and His reassuring words for you. If you don’t notice a particular phrase, consider this suggestion:
INHALE: If I settle on the far side of the sea;
EXHALE: Even there your hand will guide me.
If you’d like a copy of this Prayer Reflection on Psalm 139 in PDF form, please click on the link.
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