Reflections From A Hospital Bed

A few thoughts: Reflections from a hospital bed.

Moved To Mercy

As I lay here struggling

Just to breath

Nurses attending my every need

Doctors providing their opinions

I stare out the window

Wondering in isolation

"When will it end?"

While an insidious foe

Rages through my body

Like a wildfire out of control.

I have compared thee

To a siege from dark ages

When knights clashed

Protecting their reputations

But battle was not their only weapon

And only as a last resort

As they pledged to help the hopeless

The hungry, and oppressed

And so I call upon you

Oh noble knight within

To prepare for battle

As this foe rages on

And I scarce 

Can take another breath.

Oh Lord

Almighty Father

By whose benevolence I beckon

Not only for myself

But for all who suffer

From whatever cause

Physical, emotional or situational

Be comforted by your compassion

And through the saving grace

Of your son Jesus

Be forgiven of sin

Lifted up by your Holy Spirit

Brought to healing, peace of mind

And restful sanctuary.

May all who bring evil

Oppression, and suffering

Into this world

Upon the innocent

Be moved to mercy

So that healing can begin.

Amen

D.A. Wittler 5/16/21

As I Ponder the Destination

    I am not ashamed to say I believe in the power of prayer or the God who saves. I pass on this message because I truly care and believe that our nation is being insidiously invaded from within. The communists of the Soviet Union outnumbered us with tanks, guns and troops and we still defeated them. The Nazis were well on their way to defeating Europe until we came along. The slave owners nearly tore us apart until the will of a praying man kept us together. The proof goes back to our founding that "With God all things are possible." Let us be true to that calling and pray like the lives of our children depend on it, which it really does. It is a time for spiritual warfare.




     I do not advocate the burning of books, whatever they might infer or suggest because I know that even the Good Book can have its message twisted to serve whatever means man wishes to use against his fellow man. I do not advocate the harassment of innocent people because of what they choose to wear as a symbol of their faith and I certainly do not pray for harm to come to people who choose freely the idea of liberty and come to the home of the free and the land of the brave. It is in and through these things that led the poor, the tired, the homeless and the restless refuge of the world to seek opportunity in a place to claim as their own and a chance to prosper through hard work, determination and in the hope in their children’s future prosperity. I can say I share in the words of a man who stood at the chiseled image of a martyred leader who came to terms with his humanity and declared the captives free in spite of the suffering and death caused through conflict.



     I believe in honor, dignity and the struggle to find personal integrity when all around is temptation, greed and the notion that no one individual can save the world for I know that it is true with God through the sacrifice of his only son. In fact, we are asked each day of our lives to put these very things in peril every time we dare to say a simple prayer in the name of Jesus Christ. Each time I ponder the image of a stranger standing beside the path to Jerusalem knowing full well the fate that awaits, I shudder to think what a weaker human being would have chosen if it had been any other than Christ himself. I wonder today my own destination and the path which leads to death and eternal life all at the same moment in time. What an awesome challenge to rise from slumber each morning and to know there is a way, truth and life in communion with a God who gives so much. May he make you consider your way and to change whatever lurks in the dark recesses of your soul that leads you astray. Amen.

In the Market Place of Prayer

photos: David & Martha Dearinger 2007.

These photos were taken in Wurzburg Germany in 2007. I was stationed there between 1982-1984. I found this web album by David and Martha Dearinger; a couple who had been stationed at the same military installation as I was only a few years earlier. These images bring back memories. If you would like to see more pictures of this beautiful Bavarian city, here is the link: http://wurzburg-photos.com/

I walk on cobble stone
Seemingly alone
Unlike the smooth and level space of home
Each step imperiled with weather or slope
Carried by hope
Sometimes slick with rain or steep terrain
As I approach the castle keep
Ready to leap
Where vendors display
A whole array
Farm fresh and floral spray
Gathered from a hillside
Or field below the meadow
I feel the yearning as a pull
Upon a heart string offered
In the market place of prayer.