When a member of a household is passing through a time of anguish or great need, this prayer may be appropriate.
All make the sign of the cross. The leader begins:
God comforts us in all our afflictions.
Blessed be God forever.
R/. Blessed be God forever.
Then the Scripture is read:
Listen to the words of the Book of Job (7:3-7, 11):
So I have been assigned months of misery,
and troubled nights have been told off for me.
If in bed I say, "When shall I arise?"
Then the night drags on;
I am filled with restlessness until the dawn.
My flesh is clothed with worms and scabs;
my skin cracks and festers;
My days are swifter than a weaver's shuttle;
they come to an end without hope.
Remember that my life is like the wind;
I shall not see happiness again.
My own utterance I will not restrain;
I will speak in the anguish of my spirit;
I will complain in the bitterness of my soul.
Reader: The Word of the Lord.
R/. Thanks be to God.
After a time of silence, all join in prayers of intercession and in the Lord's Prayer. Then the leader prayers:
God of all mercies, God of all consolation,
comfort us in our afflictions
that we in turn might comfort those who are in trouble
with the same consolation we have received.
Grant this through Christ our Lord.
R/. Amen
All make the sign of the cross as the leader concludes:
Let us bless the Lord.
R/. Thanks be to God.
The prayer may conclude with "Amazing Grace" or another appropriate song.