"I will bless you … and you will be a blessing." Genesis 12:2

All of us heed the flashing lights and siren of a speeding ambulance. We pray that the patient receives prompt medical help and recovers quickly. Our Christian faith teaches us to have sympathy for the sick and injured. Jesus Himself taught concern and compassion for the needy.

Heathen religions demonstrate little regard for the afflicted. The ancient Greeks murdered deformed babies; other cultures eliminated their sick and aged. But because of the influence of a Christian woman named Fabiola, who lived in Rome in A.D. 390, the first public hospitals were established. Since then, Christians, recognizing their great responsibilities toward the suffering, have united their efforts to provide health care.Most church bodies today support agencies of mercy and offer assistance to the physically and mentally disabled, the sick and dying, aged, homeless, needy, and abused. Jesus, the Savior of sinners, is primarily revealed as the true healer for life’s desperate afflictions. Only He can cure our souls and make us right before God. Christians are to be generous in their support of healing ministries – out of concern for the spiritual and human needs of the helpless.

PRAYER: Lord Jesus, enable me to help lighten the pain of others. Amen.

(Devotions from “The Abundant Life” copyright 1998, CPH. All Rights Reserved. No part of this publication may be printed, reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without prior written permission of Concordia Publishing House. Permission is granted for one-time e-mailing of this link to a friend. For information on other devotional material, please contact CPH at 800-325-3040 or visit CPH at www.cph.org.)

Today's Bible Readings: 2 Samuel 6-7    Psalms 30    John 1:29-51

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