prayers, please.

i don't often use this blog as a place to post prayer requests, but there is a very important one right now that needs the hearts of as many people as possible to speak it.  my dear friend kim, her husband brandon, and their son vincent are in the hospital.  


kim has given birth to two silent babies, natalie and tobias.  now she is 19 weeks pregnant with vincent and there is reason to be concerned because she experienced some bleeding and so they are carefully monitoring her on the high risk pregnancy floor and keeping her inverted so as to take the pressure off her cervix and hopefully keep little vincent cooking inside for many more weeks.


i ask for your prayers for baby vincent, that his brother and sister who are in heaven with God will keep careful watch over him and help him continue to grow inside his mommy's womb.  i ask for your prayers for kim, that her faith and hope and knowledge of vincent's well-being will be enough to keep her spirits high during what is sure to be a long journey ahead.  i ask for your prayers for brandon, that he may rest in the strength of his heavenly father when he feels tired and weak from carrying the weight of the world on his shoulders on behalf of his family.  i ask for your prayers for this sweet, sweet family that has experienced tremendous loss and suffering and needs to be able to hold their sweet, healthy, full-term baby in their arms.  loving God, please give kim and brandon the grace of mary and joseph, who also experienced immense challenges and suffering in their journey as parents, but who never lost faith.


He approached, grasped her hand, and helped her up.  
(From today's Gospel, Mark 1:31)


Loving God, do for Kim, Brandon, and Vincent what you did for Simeon's mother-in-law.  Be near them, hold their hands, and help them up.