Prayer of an Afflicted One

Oh Lord how long will this sickness afflict me?
How long will this blight be upon my soul?
My spirit is sick within me.
For many nights I have wept in anguish,
yet my bitter tears give me no sustenance.

When, my God, will you come to my aid?
Will my plea be unheard by your ears?
Behold the jackals close in about me,
cackling madly at my distress,
jeering at my wounded soul.

Turn not your face from me, oh God!
You who created me, do not abandon me now!
Without your aid I shall perish.
As surely as a blind man would perish in the woods,
will I perish without the help of the Lord.

Why, oh Lord, am I forsaken?
Why am I forgotten like the dead?
No companion have I save my grief
and the evil one who afflicts me,
mocking me in my pain.

My Spirit is assaulted by grief and anguish.
my soul is burdened with bitter sorrows.
Like an army besieging a city
my foes have besieged my soul.
With evil hearts they seek my life.

In this dark and sorrowful time
I have but one hope: the Lord.
I cast myself on his love and protection.
Surely he will shelter me in his arms,
as a father shelters his child from the terrors of the night.

My last hope is in you, my Savior.
Your mercy is my only chance for life.
Bereft of all other hopes I cling to you.
Save me, oh Lord, in my anguish!
Oh God, save my soul!

Although I feel alone against my enemies,
the Lord is not far from me.
When my spirit wails in desolation
the Lord will answer.
He will hear the cry of my lips
and rush with great haste to protect me.

For the Lord is their for all his children
even when they perceive him not.
A loving God, he abandons not his creations.
He watches over them with love
and protects them from the evil one.

Therefore, though my soul is sick and alone, I trust.
I trust in the Lord who will never leave me.
Like a mountain of rock he is there,
though my soul and senses perceive him not.
He will shelter me in his love.