Worship belongs
in healthcare

The words that describe how I felt during the worship were “seen and seeing.” Not only did I feel seen by the Lord’s nearness, but I was able to surrender my fears surrounding the situation through worship. My prayers were filled with trust that Jesus has His loving eye on my mom, and that He is worthy of worship regardless of what our current circumstance looks like. He saw my weariness, and I was able to see the sweetness of His presence. Worshipping through a time of worry is an invitation to live in anticipation of seeing how His restoration looks — both here and in Heaven.

I reached out because when my mom’s health suddenly began failing, I knew leaning into the presence of God was the only thing that would bring comfort to our hearts and bodies. It was a miracle I was able to fly home at such short notice to spend time with her in her sickness, and I was reminded that it’s always a miracle that God shows up in our moments of desperation and celebration. When my mom didn’t have the energy to stand, we were still able to go before His throne with petitions and thankfulness, and exchange worry for worship. He doesn’t leave us to carry burdens on our own, and it was a healing experience to have fellow believers in our home contending before the Lord on behalf of my mom.

The most precious moment was seeing my mom and brother prayed over. It’s hard being a long-distance daughter, especially when an emergency happens. I trust God is working in mighty ways in my family, even when I don’t always get to see where He’s causing breakthrough. It was beautiful to see God’s heart come through the prayers of others for both people I have such a big heart for.

As someone who comes from a family with various high-risk health conditions, I know it’s vulnerable to ask for prayer in an uncertain situation surrounding health. It’s a huge step to invite people into the area where a lot of battles are fought — whether that’s a living room or a hospital room. But that’s the gift of the body of Christ: to move how and where He moves. He moves into the darkest, scariest battlefields of our lives, and with Him is victory. I have no doubt that Jesus was present in our home during that time of worship. I would suggest Proclaiming Praise to other families with loved ones on a healthcare journey, because there’s no better time spent than with the Healer.

My sister, Chantal, was in a devastating car crash in 2024. She has a Traumatic Brain Injury, or TBI for short, which has left her bedbound as a quadriplegic as well as nonverbal. However, she is alert. She opens and moves her eyes, makes facial expressions, yawns, and even cries at times. Last year, she kept getting pneumonia and had to keep going back to the hospital. I was talking with my best friend about it, and how defeated my parents and I felt about all of it. She mentioned she knew a girl who does worship with her husband and a friend, and that she could reach out to see if they would be willing to come and sing and pray over Chantal. I thought, why not give it a shot?

To sum up how I felt during the worship experience, I would say hope is the best word to describe it. Going into the hospital day in and day out is very draining on your mind, body, and spirit, so it was nice to just have a moment during our visit to be reminded of God and all that He is capable of. Even if He decides not to deliver healing, He is still there, and we can lean on Him for our strength, peace, and hope. One of the best gifts God has given us is each other, and it felt so welcoming to have Sabrina, Tyler, and Sergio take time out of their day to come and sing praises of God’s blessings over us.

My family and I definitely felt respected during our time with Proclaiming Praise. They were conscientious of Chantal’s condition and wore the appropriate PPE during the session. They took the time to introduce themselves to me, my mom, and my sister. Sergio was guided by the Holy Spirit to play certain songs he felt called to, and they were very fitting choices.

The most cherished moment was when they asked how they could pray for us, and my mom said she wanted all the prayer to go to Chantal — and they kindly prompted her to receive prayer for herself as well. I was so happy they said this, because my mom always puts her children before herself, being the selfless person she is, and she often forgets that she, too, needs prayer.

I would absolutely recommend Proclaiming Praise to other families facing their own healthcare battles, because what have you got to lose in trying? Just by showing up, you can tell that Tyler, Sabrina, and their worship leaders have a genuine and compassionate heart and just want to pour into you as you pour into your loved ones. Before they began, I was a little nervous the hospital staff would get upset with us for being too loud or having too many visitors in the room. But once worship ended, one of the nurses came in and said it was so nice to listen to, and that they wished more people were doing it. I’m sure the music trickled down the hallway, bringing joy to other residents as well. And I know my sister really enjoyed it, because she was looking around the room at everyone and appeared happy and content. She has always been the kind of girl to love good company and good music.

The words I would use are “overwhelmed with joy.” During worship, I felt like my family and I were being met by God’s grace and mercy in such a real and personal way. I felt so covered in His love that it’s hard to fully put into words. It was truly a gift to worship with my family outside the four walls of a church and experience God’s presence right there in our living room. I’m so grateful for Tyler and Sabrina and their ministry, Proclaiming Praise, because without them my family might not have had the opportunity to experience such a beautiful and meaningful moment together during such a difficult season. Their ministry reminded us that no matter what we’re going through, God can meet us right where we are.

I reached out to Proclaiming Praise because I had a family member who, at the time, was no longer able to attend church services because of her declining health. I had attended a Proclaiming Praise event before, and the worship really moved me. I remember thinking how much I wanted my family member to experience that same joy, love, and presence of God. There is something so powerful about worship music, because it reaches places in your heart that words sometimes can’t. The experience truly honored me and my family. It reminded us that even when someone can’t physically make it to church, they can still experience the beauty of worship and the presence of the Lord right where they are.

The most precious moment was in the middle of worship when I opened my eyes and looked over at my family member. She had her arms lifted, worshiping the Lord and singing her heart out to Jesus. I had never seen her worship like that before, and it was a moment I’ll never forget. As I looked around the room, I also saw my family in Christ and my friends who had come alongside us during one of the lowest and darkest seasons of our lives. I just started weeping, because it was so beautiful to see. In the middle of so much uncertainty and pain, we were able to experience the goodness of God together. It reminded me what it means to taste and see that the Lord is good, even in the hardest seasons of life.

I would recommend Proclaiming Praise to any family walking through a healthcare journey with a loved one. I truly believe worship is medicine for the soul. During one of the darkest seasons our family has experienced, worship brought us hope, peace, comfort, and a sense of renewal that we really needed. It gave us a chance to pause from everything we were carrying and simply be in the presence of God together. Proclaiming Praise helped bridge the gap for our family by bringing worship beyond the four walls of the church and into our home when we needed it most. If God could meet our family in such a beautiful way through this ministry, I believe He can do the same for others.

Once we began to worship and pray, it’s like any lingering fear got up and left the room. This gave me full freedom to look to Jesus, and inviting Him into that space allowed me to see past what I saw with my eyes — not denying it, but believing that He was greater and had the final say over my dad’s health. It reminded me and everyone in the room of the life that is in Christ: no matter what happened, He alone was our hope, and my dad was in His hands. And what peace filled the room because of this living hope.

A friend had told me about Proclaiming Praise after I’d shared my concern for my dad. She encouraged me and mentioned how it was literally their heart and desire to bring worship into hospital rooms. I was so excited, because I had it on my heart but was unsure how to go about it, and I remembered Jesus’s promise in Matthew 18:20. So I reached out — and I’m so grateful that I did. Even upon arrival, Tyler and Eli were both so respectful of my dad’s situation and where we were emotionally, but still determined to bring the hope of glory into the room in the midst of it all. And how Jesus met us, including my dad, in that space was beyond expectation.

The most precious moment I remember was when we began praying over my dad, and Tyler began speaking life over him. I remember some of his words specifically: “I see Jesus in your eyes…” He spoke what the Lord was revealing to him into the room and into my dad’s spirit. And in the moment my dad couldn’t speak due to his hemorrhagic stroke, the Lord was using Tyler to speak for him — encouraging him in the Lord. This moment touched my family’s hearts and gave us a new perspective, seeing my father in the light of Christ.

I would definitely encourage those dear to my heart who are on a healthcare journey to reach out to Proclaiming Praise. It’s so easy to hear the report of the doctor and get focused on what’s wrong — but to be surrounded and encouraged by family in Christ who really cares, and to be reminded even in the midst of our troubles of the hope of glory that Christ gives… oh, what a blessing and a joy that truly is. And how sweet it is that this hope is for anyone who simply believes.