Personal Prayer in Patients Dealing with Chronic Illness: A Review of the Research Literature
Table 3
Example quotes for each category.
Category
Example quote
Study
Improvement in health and/or state of mind
“When I get pains and soreness—soreness and pain or aches or whatever, I pray to God He relieve it; cast it out of my body…He’s the only one that can heal it.”
“My doctor wanted me to go on medication and I told them that I have to think about it, but I just pray about it…I was scared, but I prayed and asked God for wisdom and knowledge.”
Positive contributions for the experience of the disease
“When I came to the hospital, I did a little bit of praying, and then after that, I started believing that I needed to live each day at a time and take advantage of this time I have, you know? I don’t feel like putting things off any longer. I realized that I needed to get things, certain things, accomplished and enjoy the day. That’s what spirituality meant to me so far.”
Relationship with God (e.g., guidance and conversation with God)
“I realize that God is around me and in me, and He’s my friend, because I talk to Him like we’re really pals, although I know He’s God, He’s a pal-God. He’s like the closest pal I know that I can talk to about the hardest things that I have to think about.”
“And then you know just do your praising. I praise you and I thank you and I praise you and every time thank you Jesus. I praise you Jesus. That’s all. It’s very simple.”
“I use both prayer and meditation. It’s nice to pray about things, and it’s also nice to sit there and be very quiet and relax and listen for answers.”
“I know when you have an illness, you have the focus of just praying, not only for yourself, but for your family and the people you love and the people that need you.”
“The prayer protection. You know, “The love of God surrounds me, the love of God unfolds me, the power of God protects me, and the presence of God watches over me. For wherever I am God is and always shall be.” So I said that prayer—I said it before I went into surgery then and I said it in the—in the surgery room for breast cancer.”
“[I pray] I need strength today. Today is a hard day. Get me to my next visit. It’s kind of like bribery to me. I don’t ever…If you God take something away from me, then you have got to give me strength to deal with it.”
“I just pray, I pray every morning. I pray every morning, and thank Him for …either your cup is half full or your cup is half empty. When I get up, I thank God because I have another day.”
“There are times when I say “why me?” because I know a lot of people who—to put it bluntly—who deserve something hard to happen and not a thing seems to happen to them. But I don’t have no control over it and it gives me some comfort to talk to Whoever it is upstairs.”
“It’s very hard for me to believe that there’s One Person that hears everybody’s Prayers… I just leave my illness to God; but He may not have all power over it.”