Prayers for all Occasions, Needs, and Intentions

PRAYERS FOR THE SICK

A collection of beautiful prayers when visiting or praying for the sick

Acts of Most Necessary Virtues for the Sick

Prayer in the Beginning of Sickness  

O heavenly Father, who in Thy wisdom knowest what is best for me, glory be to Thee. Lord, ift it seems good in Thy sight, remove from me this sickness which I now feel seizing upon me, that I may employ my health to Thy glory, and praise Thy name. But if Thou art pleased it should grow on me, I willingly submit to Thy afflicting hand, for Thou art wont to chasten those whom Thou dost love, and Thou hast promised not to lay on me any more than Thou wilt enable me to bear. I know, O my God, that Thou sendest this sickness on me for my good, even to humble and to prove me; O grant that it may not fail to work that saving effect in me. O Lord, create in me a true sorrow for all my past sins, a firm faith in Thee, and sincere resolutions of amendment for the time to come. Deliver me from all fretfulness and impatience, and give me an entire resignation to Thy divine will: O suffer not my sickness to take away my senses, and do Thou continually supply my thoughts with holy ejaculations. Lord, bless all the means that are used for my recovery, and restore me to my health, if it be Thy will, in Thy good time; but if Thou hast appointed otherwise for me, Thy blessed will be done. O wean my affections from all things of earth, and fill me with ardent desires after heaven: Lord, fit me for Thyself, and then call me, when Thou pleasest, to that joy unspeakable and full of glory; for the sake of Thine Only Son, Jesus Christ, my Lord and Savior. Amen.

For Hospital Patients in General   

Father, I thank you for raising up doctors, nurses and all medical teams, and for placing me in this great country of ours where these are available. Naturally, I do not want to be in this hospital, but help me to see a blessing in this. Heal me not only in body but also in mind and soul so that I may be the kind of person you want me to be. Amen. 

Jesus, you healed many patients. Bless my doctors, nurses and everyone who cares for me with your own wisdom, understanding, gentleness and respect for personhood and pour your healing power into them. May we all cooperate for your honor and glory. Amen.   

Holy Spirit, you made your dwelling in me through baptism and confirmation. I shall feel lonely and awkward in this place. Warm and strengthen my heart with your love and friendship that I may truly realize the saying that the Holy Spirit hovers over the pillow of every patient. Amen.   

For those whom I have left at home (mention your friends), that they may be surrounded by God’s love and care and their anxiety lightened with his heavenly peace, I pray to the Father:  

For my fellow patients, that we may grow in some kind of community of love and understanding together, I pray to the Father :  

For the chaplains in this hospital, that they may be anointed with Jesus’ power, I pray to the Father: 

For the laboratory technicians, radiologists, physical therapists and all other workers in this hospital, that they may realize the dignity of their calling in Christ’s ministry of healing, I pray to the Father: 

Father, when we are stripped of our clothes, and others handle our bodies, we feel the loss of the dignity of personhood. Please give me the grace to accept these humiliations with poise and a sense of elegant humor in union with the dispositions of your beloved Son when he hung naked on the cross and the crowds passed by, jeering at him. My suffering is nothing compared with Jesus’ or with those who endure imprisonment or extreme poverty even nowadays; yet grant, if it is your will, that the people who care for me may, by your clemency, treat me as they would like to be treated themselves and thus fulfill your precept, “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” Amen.   

Mother Mary, you watched the suffering and embarrassment of your only Son. Be the mainstay and support of my friends and relatives who endure mental anguish because I can no longer attend to my own needs. Pray to the Father to give them not only that same sense of warm care and awestruck love that must have been yours when first you lifted the Son of God, a naked, helpless babe, into your arms, but also your respect for his adult manhood when you saw him naked on the cross. Amen.   

Lord, I cry out in anguish of soul and I ask for rest. Lord, take away despair and grant me peace of mind and body. Grant me blessed sleep. But if this is not your gracious will, I unite myself to your Son’s sleepless vigil in Gethsemane and with him I say, “Father, not my will but yours.” Amen.   

Lord, even as, alone, Jacob fought throughout the night with the angel and thereafter received a blessing, that is, the transmission of divine vitality, bless me, also alone, this long, long night. I seem to have no rest for my body, but I ask you to grant some benefit to my soul. Amen.   

Father, thank you for the medicine which brings sleep. May I and my fellow patients have rest of body. Even as you dealt kindly with your servant Jacob, fill this hospital with a sense of your vivid presence that the wondrous fragrance of your love may never leave us. Through Christ our Lord. Amen.   

Lord, our God and gracious Father, while the angels and saints give you ceaseless praise, you give to your loved ones on earth the sacred hours of sleep. May these hours be hallowed as your name is hallowed; may they refresh our bodies, minds and souls; may they draw a quiet curtain over all our weaknesses and sins, and prove to be the gateway to a new day. Amen.   

Jesus, tonight some soul will glide from this mortal earth to the many mansions you have prepared for those who love you. Grant that he may be surrounded by his loved ones, without pain of body, with clarity and serenity of mind, and with joyful expectancy of soul. Amen.

Prayer for the Sick

Dear Jesus, Divine Physician and Healer of the Sick, we turn to You in this time of illness. O dearest comforter of the troubled, alleviate our worry and sorrow with Your gentle love, and grant us the grace and strength to accept this burden.

Dear God, we place our worries in Your hands. We place our sick under Your care and humbly ask that You restore Your servant to health again.

Above all, grant us the grace to acknowledge Your holy will and know that whatsoever You do, You do for the love of us. Amen.

Another Prayer for the Sick

Grant we beseech Thee, O God, Our Lord, that these thy servants may enjoy enduring health of mind and body; and that, through the glorious intercession of the Blessed Mary, ever Virgin, they may be freed from present sorrow and possess eternal joy, through Christ our Lord. Amen.

For Patients With Eye Disorders    

Scriptural Reading (Mark 10:46-52)

They came to Jericho next, and as he was leaving that place with his disciples and a sizable crowd, there was a blind beggar Bartimaeus (“son of Timaeus”) sitting by the roadside. On hearing that it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to call out, “Jesus, Son of David, have pity on me!” Many people were scolding him to make him keep quiet, but he shouted all the louder, “Son of David, have pity on me!” Then Jesus stopped and said, “Call him over.” So they called the blind man over, telling him as they did so, “You have nothing to fear from him! Get up, He is calling you!” He threw aside his cloak, jumped up and came to Jesus. Jesus asked him, “What do you want me to do for you?” “Rabboni ,“ the blind man said, “I want to see.” Jesus said in reply, “Be on your way! Your faith has healed you.” Immediately he received his sight and started to follow him up the road.   

Prayers   

Jesus, my Lord and my brother, you preached more eloquently from the cross than during your busy charismatic ministry because you preached the greatest love, namely, the innocent dying for the guilty. You allowed Paul to be imprisoned, but the gospel was not chained. You let the blood of the martyrs be the life-force of the Church. Teach me to witness to you even from my hospital bed. Give me the wisdom and grace to help my fellow patients, my visitors, and even the staff. Show me that I am not useless but that “a door has been opened wide for my work.” (1 Corinthians 16:9). Even though there are many adversities, give me resourcefulness to overcome these. Amen.   

Father, hear my complaints with a sympathetic ear as you have heard the complaints of stricken men and women, even psalmists, prophets and saints, throughout the years. If it is your will, let this chalice pass from me and from my relatives and friends. Let me now read, learn and inwardly digest your answer to Job so that in some small way I may comprehend the marvelous and unfathomable mystery of your love and purpose for us all. Amen.   

Lord, in my misery I acknowledge, even though it is with an effort, your superior wisdom and providence. As you guide the whole universe so tenderly and with such expertise, so now guide me and my family through this experience. Let me feel the power of your loving presence. Amen.   

Heavenly Father, Jesus my brother, and Holy Spirit, St. Paul’s words express my feelings so well. In one way I long to remain on this earth; in another I look forward to the end of pain and illness and I long for the felicity of heaven, to be with you, my Triune God. Teach me now how to go forth with dignity, serenity, joy and expectancy and yet not to be heedless of the grief of my friends. Grant them the grace to rejoice that I shall be with you; give them understanding into the wondrous mystery of the communion of the saints and let Mary and the companions who stood with her by the cross be with us all. Amen.

For the Sick

Father, your Son accepted our sufferings to teach us the virtue of patience in human illness. Hear the prayers we offer for our sick brothers and sisters. May all who suffer pain, illness or disease realize that they are chosen to be saints, and know that they are joined to Christ in his suffering for the salvation of the world, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, forever and ever. Amen.   

For Persons in Danger of Death   

(The sense of hearing is the last to leave a dying person. Even though the dying person cannot respond, he often hears what is said).   

Jesu, Maria, I am near to death,

And thou art calling me; I know it now,

Not by the token of this faltering breath,

This chill at heart, this dampness on my brow,

(Jesu, have mercy! Mary, pray for me!)

Tis this new feeling never felt before,

(Be with me, Lord, in my extremity!)

That I am going, that I am no more.

Tis this strange innermost abandonment,

(Lover of souls! Great God! I look to thee!)

This emptying out of each constituent

And natural force, by which I come to be.

Pray for me, 0 my friends; a visitant

Is knocking his dire summons at my door,

The like of whom, to scare me and to daunt,

Has never, never come to me before:

So pray for me, my friends, who have not

strength to pray.  (John Henry Newman)    

Abide with me; fast falls the eventide;

The darkness deepens; Lord, with me abide;

When other helpers fail, and comforts flee,

Help of the helpless, 0 abide with me.

Swift to its close ebbs out life’s little day;

Earth’s joys row dim, its glories pass away;

Change and decay in all around I see;

0 thou who changest not, abide with me.

Hold thou thy cross before my closing eyes;

Shine through the gloom, and point me to

the skies;

Heaven’s morning breaks, and earth’s vain shadows flee;

In life, in death, 0 Lord, abide with me. (Henry Francis Lyte)  

Lead, kindly Light, amid the encircling gloom,

Lead thou me on;

The night is dark and I am far from home,

Lead thou me on.

Keep thou my feet; I do not ask to see

The distant scene; one step enough for me.

I was not ever thus, nor prayed that thou  

Shouldst lead me on;

I loved to choose and see my path; but now

Lead thou me on.

I loved the garish day, and, spite of fears,

Pride ruled my will: remember not past years.

So long thy power hath blest me, sure it still

Will lead me on

O’er moor and fen, o’er crag and torrent, till

The night is gone,

And with the morn those angel faces smile,

Which I have loved long since and lost awhile.  (John Henry Newman)

Thanksgiving for Recovery from Sickness

Glory be to Thee, O heavenly Father, for the sickness Thou hast in mercy sent me. Lord, the stripes Thou didst lay on me were the stripes of love; glory be to Thee. Before I was humbled I did wickedly; but now will I keep Thy word. It is good for me that Thou hast humbled me, that I might learn Thine ordinances.

Glory be to Thee, O Lord, glory be to Thee, for delivering me from the terrors of death, and restoring me to my health again; glory be to Thee. I called upon the Lord in my trouble, and the Lord heard me. I shall not die, but live and declare the works of the Lord. Bless the Lord, therefore, O my soul; as long as I have my life, which at first God gave me, and which He has now restored to me, I will sing praises unto my God.

O Lord God, who hast in Thy tender mercy prolonged my days in this world, give me grace to spend this life, which Thou has now lengthened, in Thy service. O give me grace to perform all my resolutions of new obedience, and so to live in the filial fear of Thee all the remainder of my time that I may at last die at peace with myself, at peace with the whole world, and at peace with Thee; for the sake of Thy Dearly-beloved Son, our Lord and Savior.

Our Father..., Hail Mary..., Glory be to the Father...

The Blessing of God Almighty, the Father, + the Son, and the Holy Ghost, descend upon me and all belonging to me, and dwell in my heart and be with me in my going out and coming in, now, and forever. Amen. 

For a sick person near Death 

Almighty and Everlasting God, preserver of souls, who dost correct those whom Thou dost love, and for their amendment dost tenderly chastise those whom Thou dost receive, we call upon Thee, O Lord, to bestow Thy healing, that the soul of Thy servant, (mention name), at the hour of his (her) departure from the body, may by the hands of Thy holy Angels be presented without spot unto Thee. Amen.

For the Sick

Almighty and Eternal God, the everlasting Health of them that believe: hear us for Thy sick servant, (mention name), for whom we implore the aid of Thy pitying mercy, that, with his (her) bodily health restored, he (she) may give thanks to Thee in Thy Church. Through Christ our Lord. Amen.