What is the Hardest Part of Living with Illness? Your Responses!

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What is the hardest part of living with a chronic illness? Well, it depends on who you are asking, what time of day you are asking, and a million other factors. Yet, we all have so much in common and we can understand the challenges of the friend beside us even if we don't deal with it ourselves. We all feel "called" to certain things, and not being able to do them--from homeschooling to making dinner--is difficult when we don't feel we can do what we, and others, expect from our self. And the fact that it is invisible . . . well, that makes many of the struggles even more painful as we feel we must justify a housekeeper or a parking placard.   We asked you, "What is the hardest part of living with illness?" and here are your … [Read more...]

Devotion: Take Every Thought and Emotion to Jesus

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"We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ. " (2 Corinthians 10:5) Lately I seem to be full of all kinds of emotions. When I'm in a flare I tend to feel helpless, lonely, and depressed. One would think that after spending seventeen years with chronic fatigue syndrome and fibromyalgia I would not have these feelings anymore. But they are there. Thoughts creep in like: Who will take care of me if I can't even take care of myself? Who will help me with my children? Will my husband run out of patience or be cold and distant? I know I need to bring ever thought captive to Christ. How do you do that when you feel like your … [Read more...]

Devotion: Finding God’s Strength In Our Fatigue of Illness

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“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest." (Matthew 11:28) Have you ever been so tired that you did not even have the energy to watch TV? Think about that. How much energy could it require, and how much poor concentration is needed to sit in front of a TV set? Yet I've found myself even that exhausted, to the point of not enough energy for the mindless entertainment of television. Sometimes God will speak to you in your spirit, just a small voice that you must listen closely to hear. Recently I was praying to God and saying, "Lord, today I need You to carry me for I have no strength." The Lord surprised me by responding, "I've been carrying you today and every day." I burst out laughing because … [Read more...]