Help when your child or unborn baby is seriously ill and you don’t know what to pray.
When your child or unborn baby is facing serious medical problems, it can be hard to know what to pray. The shock, uncertainty and fear can mean that even though you want to cry out to God in prayer, your words just dry up.
That’s where this book can help, with prayers that use Scripture to help you communicate with the Lord. Whether you need to cry out honestly to the Lord in grief, to pray boldly for healing and help or simply to process what is happening, you'll find words to help you talk with the God who loves you and weeps with you—the God who can do all things.
Authors Eric Schumacher and Jessika Sanders both know what it’s like to face a family medical crisis, and they are passionate about helping others in the most difficult situations. Eric is the author of Ours: Biblical Comfort for Men Grieving Miscarriage. Jessika is the Executive Director of Praying Through Ministries, which provides support for parents whose children have been hospitalised and families who have experienced child loss.
This easy-to-navigate book includes prayers for a clear diagnosis; prayers for healing; prayers for comfort and relief from pain; prayers for peace, courage, perseverance and wisdom to cope well; prayers for unity; for the extended family; for the medical team; for practical needs; for times of spiritual darkness and doubt; and much more.
This book is designed to help both parents and the wider family turn to God for help when a child is facing a medical crisis.
Introduction
Section 1: For Uncertain and Fearful Times
Section 2: For Healing
Section 3: For Our Child
Section 4: For Our Family
Section 5: For the Medical Team
Section 6: For the Things We Need
Section 7: For Times of Spiritual Darkness and Doubt
Section 8: For Lifting Our Eyes in Praise
Section 9: For Occasions
Section 10: For Giving Thanks After Healing
Section 11: For Loss
Section 12: For Life After Loss
| Contributors | Jessika Sanders, Eric M. Schumacher, Emily Jensen, Brad Jensen |
|---|---|
| ISBN | 9781784989798 |
| Format | eBook |
| First published | June 2024 |
| Language | English |
| Publisher | The Good Book Company |
As a mother of multiple children with serious health conditions, there are times when I don’t know how or what to pray. Eric and Jessika’s heartfelt, Scripture-based prayers put words to thoughts and feelings that can be hard to express, while also helping parents like me to look to God and hope in him.
In His Hands is a precious resource for families who are clinging to God during the heartache and confusion of medical crises. These prayers are steeped in Scripture; they are full of humble wisdom, honest lament, and godly hope. When circumstances are so overwhelming that you don’t even know what to say, these prayers will draw you close to God and help you find your voice.
What a gift Schumacher and Sanders offer the hurting with In His Hands, a beautiful, poignant collection of prayers for those touched by child illness and loss. Nuanced with the wisdom of personal experience and saturated with Scripture, this book will offer a voice to the suffering when words fail, and point them to the one, true Word who has borne their sorrows and is acquainted with grief.
When a child/unborn baby is facing serious medical problems, the fear and uncertainty these families experience can be so huge that words can be lost in the sea of grief and overwhelm. This is a beautiful and precious resource for those in suffering and need words they don't have.
Eric and Jessika have written a book full of faithful and heartfelt prayers inspired by Scripture to help us talk with our loving and compassionate God. They have even included simple but truthful prayers for little children to use to talk to our God who always listens.
This resource is such a blessing for families in grief and those walking alongside these families. I have and will continue to use this book to pray for/with my suffering friends. May we all remember God is with us and for us in every affliction in life.
Note: I received a copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
In His Hands is a hopeful and comforting book. It gives words for prayers and lamenting when you don't even have the capacity to find the words needed.
I think this will be a wonderful gift to give to parents in the hardest situations.
This is an abridged version of my original review. You can read my full review at https://www.lifeisstory.com/nonfiction/in-his-hands-prayers-for-your-child-or-baby-in-a-medical-crisis-eric-m-schumacher-and-jessika-sanders/
Eric M. Schumacher and Jessika Sanders wrote this book from their combined experience, and they offer sensitive, Scripture-based prayers to help struggling parents talk to God in the midst of their child’s medical crisis and perhaps death. The well-organized chapters cover lots of different themes, and the layout makes it simple for people to find the prayers they need in a particular moment.
The prayers are very short, and are ideal for weary, burdened Christians who don't have the energy for more. The authors regularly use phrases from Bible passages within the prayers, and include references below each prayer. They point their readers to truths about God while also making space for questions and anger.
My only notable critique is that this book assumes goodwill on the part of everyone's medical team, family, and friends, without including lament prayers for when helpers are insensitive or even antagonistic. These situations are so common and painful that I wish that this book had addressed them, instead of only praying about support systems in a positive light.
This book is a wonderful resource for parents who are facing the unimaginable. This book can help them process their experiences and express their emotions to God, and also guides them in ways to apply Scripture to their weary hearts and minds. This is also great for members of someone's support system to read, both to aid them in their prayers and to help them better understand what their loved ones are going through. I appreciate the authors' sensitivity and care in writing this, and highly recommend it.
Note: I received a free copy from the publisher, and am voluntarily leaving an honest review.
When the pain is so much that you just do not have words, this book is a true gift.
A gift which helps you connect with the only One who can provide strength, peace and help in time of need. 🥲
💕 What’s it about?
This book is for those experiencing or wishing to pray for those who are experiencing child medical crises or loss. It is full of very specific prayers, such as for the medical staff, extended family, doubt, healing, clear diagnoses and more. These prayers are based on the promises of scripture, with specific scripture references alongside them. 🙏
💕Concluding thoughts:
Whilst I have only had a very minor experience of a child health crisis when Elias was born, I can remember what it felt like to have control slipping out of my fingers, the worst-case scenario looming at the back of my mind, all whilst on little sleep and feeling like my mind was swimming in confusion.
I wish I had had this book at the time. ♥️
As I read these prayers aloud, thinking of those who find themselves in these situations, I felt very grateful that @jessikasanderswriter and @emschumacher took the time and care to provide this invaluable resource.
💕 Who’s it for?
If you are in this situation or know anyone who is, I can highly recommend this book, which is available for pre order now.
Thank you TGBC for generously providing this copy in exchange for my honest review. I pray it finds itself into the hands of those who need it. ♥️
I received In His Hands compliments of The Good Book Company in exchange for my honest review.
In His Hands is a lovely devotional style book by pastor Eric M. Schumacher and founder and president of Praying Through Ministries, Jessika Sanders. The book is divided into twelve sections containing prayers about various medical crises. The sections include prayers for healing, family, the medical team, times of spiritual darkness and doubt, praise, loss, and more. One thing evident about In His Hands is the care that went into crafting the book. The sections demonstrate that the authors truly thought through many if not all of the aspects parents might pray through when their child faces a medical crisis.
Each section of the book contains simple prayers for children to pray and even includes prayers parents can pray for grandparents. Prayers can be prayed individually and there are even some that can be used in group settings. Many of the prayers contain Scripture references at the end so readers can look up those references to see the verses that inspired the prayers.
The prayers are honest, tender, truth filled, and point to Jesus. The section on loss made me wish this resource existed during my miscarriage. The prayers in that section are so precious to me and it is clear that they were written with tremendous care. In His Hands is a great resource for churches to keep on hand for parents with children enduring medical crises.
Grief is a strange experience that often leaves those grieving at a loss for words. In His Hands meets parents in their grief and equips them to pour out their hearts to God in a way that honors Him and leaves them filled with hope. This is a lovely, desperately needed resource and I’m confident the Lord is going to use it in mighty ways.
"In His Hands" by Eric Schumacher and Jessika Sanders is a profoundly comforting and uplifting book. It offers specific prayers using Scripture to help parents turn to God during their child's medical crisis. The authors, drawing from their own experiences, provide empathetic and authentic support. The book's easy-to-navigate structure makes it a valuable resource for finding the right words in moments of fear and uncertainty. I highly recommend it for anyone seeking scripture filled comfort during challenging times.
