‘Instead of focusing on collateral damage all the time,’ my friend smiled, ‘I’m trying to see the collateral beauty in the midst of the challenges. I’m looking at them as opportunities. And that’s made all the difference.’ Her phrase “collateral beauty” struck me—so much so that I asked her permission to use it on the […]
presence
Why Living with Lupus is Like a Scavenger Hunt—Part 3
What about Faith? Faith can be a two-edged sword with chronic illness. On the one hand, God’s nearness and companionship have been a great comfort to me. On the other, God has not healed me of lupus. I have wrestled with this. After all, it would be a whole lot easier if God would simply […]
Survival Skills: Grace in the Flames
Three years ago I became disabled by illness. I don’t know whether it was lupus or not; the illness was never diagnosed. But it was a doozy of a flare-up and I was off work for about six months. During that time, I was virtually house-bound, going out only for medical appointments. I had to […]
Survival Skills: Scriptures for Illness
‘Doubled up with pain, I call to God All the day long. No answer. Nothing. I keep at it all night, tossing and turning… I’m a bucket kicked over and spilled, Every joint in my body has been pulled apart. My heart is a blob Of melted wax in my gut. I’m dry as a […]
How To Pray for Chronic Illness
I recently had a great experience of prayer. A group of friends came over and prayed for my illness. Guess what? They didn’t pray that I would be healed. They didn’t assume what I wanted. Instead, they listened while I articulated my prayer needs. Then, gently and sensitively, they prayed as the Holy Spirit led […]
My Prayer for You
There’s a lot of prayer involved in writing. I pray when I write. It is my prayer that God will use my words, my turns of phrase, to reach people who need to hear from him. Sometimes, when I write, I sense the Holy Spirit nudging me, prompting me to use certain language around the […]