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Henri Nouwen Society - Daily Meditation

Tuesday May 14, 2013 

 

Praying to Die Well

 

Many people say, "I am not afraid of death, but I am afraid of dying."  This is quite understandable, since dying often means illness, pain, dependency, and loneliness.

 

The fear of dying is nothing to be ashamed of.  It is the most human of all human fears. Jesus himself entered into that fear.  In his anguish "sweat fell to the ground like great drops of blood" (Luke 22:44).  How must we deal with our fear of dying?  Like Jesus we must pray that we may receive special strength to make the great passage to new life.  Then we can trust that God will send us an angel to comfort us, as he sent an angel to Jesus.  


- Henri J. M. Nouwen  

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Text excerpts taken from Bread for the Journey, by Henri J.M. Nouwen, �1997 HarperSanFrancisco. All Scripture from The Jerusalem Bible �1966, 1967, and 1968 Darton, Longman & Todd and Doubleday & Co. Inc. Photo by V. Dobson.