Isaiah 61
The Spirit of the Sovereign Lord
is on us,
because the LORD has anointed us.
He pours so much oil on our heads,
it runs down our cheeks
and stains our shoulders.
But don’t worry, we’re not in standard issue uniform,
we’ve been fitted out by our God,
suited up in salvation,
decked out in righteousness.
We are His royal priests in royal blue scrubs.
We worship him through our
drawing up of antibiotics,
dressing changes,
blood pressure checks.
Medical apparatus are our instruments of praise,
listen to the joyful sound we make unto Him as we work.
We find rhythms of prayer,
some said out loud in chapels before shifts,
some wept in toilet cubicles,
muttered in empty staff rooms,
some said silently whilst we work.
Because we’ve been commissioned
to restore what is broken,
and there are plenty of broken bodies to be found,
but we’re here for broken spirits too.
The scared, the lonely and the hopeless.
We bind up broken hearts
with words of truth, peace and love,
and we won’t stop there.
May nothing.
May no-one be left broken on our watch.
We nurse broken families,
broken colleagues, broken doctors, pharmacists, cleaners too.
Offering grace and forgiveness, instead of distrust and blame
kindness and encouragement, instead of gossip and backbiting.
We offer God our thanksgiving and lament, instead of whining and complaining.
We bravely face and feel our grief, instead of numbing ourselves to it.
We look beyond our own four
walls,
boldly seeking restoration for our broken health care systems,
asking God for His mercy on our broken nation.
Oh, what a vibrant display of God’s splendour we are.
How eye catching are His anointed ones?
People who see us, will see our God’s redeeming love and grace.
Because the Spirit of the Sovereign Lord is on us.
Let’s go!