UPDATE: Prayer Request from Shan Foti: Prayer for Merle and Alana

This is an update from Shan Foti. Thank you so much for your prayers and God bless you and yours, Teri & Michael (see below)

Dear Michael and Teri,

 

I hope you had a wonderful Christmas and are enjoying the in-between-holidays-peace.

 

Thank you to all the Prayer Warriors who lifted Merle in their prayers.  He passed away peacefully late Tuesday with Alana and I by his side.  Merle was a joy to all who knew him. 

 

The assisted living center's staff was great, and kept checking on him and us throughout the week of hospice.  They came in regularly and shared stories about why they loved him which comforted us and allowed Merle to know that the seeds of love and joy he planted on this earth were strong. 

 

We truly appreciate the care that First Serenity Hospice showed Merle in his final days allowing him to go comfortably with dignity and in peace.

 

Please hold Alana and her children, the staff and residents at Meridian of Cheviot Hills, the First Serenity Hospice team, and all Merle's relatives and friends around the country in your prayers as they grieve their loss and celebrate the life of their cherished father, grandfather, friend, coworker and community member.

 

And may the coming New Year bring us all more safety, joy, wellness and peace along with more opportunities to share our blessings with others.

 

With deep appreciation.

 

Be well,

Shan

In Loving Memory

Almighty God, through the death of Your Son on the cross, You have overcome death for us. Through his burial and resurrection from the dead You have made the grave a holy place and restored us to eternal life. We pray for those who died believing in Jesus and are buried with him in the hope of rising again. God of the living and the dead, may those who faithfully believed in You on earth praise You forever in the joy of heaven. We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen.

 

Prayer of Solace

May Christ support us all the day long, till the shadows lengthen, and the evening comes, and the busy world is hushed, and the fever of life is over and our work is done. Then in his mercy may he give us a safe lodging, and holy rest and peace at the last.

 

previous request...

From: Michael Lanham <lanham7@aol.com>
Date: Thursday, December 21, 2017 at 10:24 PM
To: Michael Lanham <Lanham7@aol.com>
Subject: Prayer Request from Shan Foti: Prayer for Merle and Alana

This is from Shan Foti. Thank you so much for your much appreciated prayers and may God bless you and your family, Teri & Michael (see below)

Dear Michael and Teri,

I hope this finds you well this holiday season.

Presently, I am in the room of my friend Alana's father Merle where I've been all day, as he is going through the final stages of hospice.  Merle is 91 and became a friend of mine when he moved to Los Angeles almost 4 years ago.  He is a veteran and retired high school principal from Washington state who had a good-yet-somewhat-crusty outlook that made me smile.  I truly enjoyed and am grateful for the time we shared.  Merle is resting comfortably with his favorite music playing and blending with the sounds of his oxygen machine and slowing breath to create a peaceful interlude before he goes Home.  It's not likely Merle will see this weekend.  Please ask the Prayer Warriors to pray that he gets the best last Christmas gift.  May Merle peacefully pass from his long, full life knowing that he had profound meaning and that we look forward to carrying his spirit forward.  Alana lost her mother 9 years ago yesterday.  This is a very difficult and complicated time for her.   She has three children who need her and (thankfully) don't have an understanding of true loss.  May we pray that she be blessed with the strength to grieve, survive and endure keeping close the comforting love and joy her father gave her.

Thanks to you both for being such a blessing to us all.  Merry Christmas!

Be well,

Shan

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 will and know that whatever You do, You do for the love of us. Amen.

In Loving Memory
Almighty God, through the death of Your Son on the cross, You have overcome death for us. Through his burial and resurrection from the dead You have made the grave a holy place and restored us to eternal life. We pray for those who died believing in Jesus and are buried with him in the hope of rising again. God of the living and the dead, may those who faithfully believed in You on earth praise You forever in the joy of heaven. We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Prayer of Solace
May Christ support us all the day long, till the shadows lengthen, and the evening comes, and the busy world is hushed, and the fever of life is over and our work is done. Then in his mercy may he give us a safe lodging, and holy rest and peace at the last. Amen.

A Plea for Divine Help

Hear us, Lord, holy Father, almighty and eternal God, and graciously send your holy angel from heaven to watch over, to cherish, to protect, to abide with, and to defend Alana and all who dwell in her house, Through Christ our Lord. Amen.