Be Strong and Courageous

 

STRONG AND COURAGEOUS

 

What encouragement can you offer someone walking through chronic illness?

 

Joshua must have been weak and afraid. Throughout the first chapter of Joshua, he is repeatedly reminded to be strong and courageous. Without the sustaining presence of God, I, too, am weak and afraid. Afraid to step. Afraid not to step. Or, afraid I’ve over-stepped. How did Joshua continue to march?

Often I just want to sit in the between and hold my breath, and wonder about what’s next.

Between flares, between normal and the next new normal, between medical appointments, between foods I can eat and then can’t, between leaning on God and avoiding God, between finding how and where to fit in and how and when to step away.

 

ONE STEP AT A TIME

Perhaps, like the Israelites who were between enslavement in Egypt and the hope of the Promised Land, we, too, march. One step at a time. At times feeling surrounded by enemies, but always covered and cared for by God.

Acceptance of my daughter’s illness and mine seemed just to happen. Yes, there were tears and frustration, but often our marching orders were it is what it is. Perhaps resignation is more accurate than acceptance. But on we marched through doctors and diagnoses, medications and therapists with no cures and no clear treatment.

So on we marched.

My daughter and I share many similar health challenges. We take turns encouraging one another by listening and suggesting, “It is what it is,” often saying, “suck it up and move on.” It’s an odd relationship, and we find ourselves enmeshed in the strange and the between.

Perhaps the reality is that life in the between can be a frightening place. Joshua must have been afraid if God told Joshua four times in one chapter to be strong and courageous. Sometimes, so am I. Living with chronic illness challenges me not to look too far ahead because I tend to worry about future things when all I need to do is experience and march and plod through the now.

At Chronic Joy®, you are welcome, accepted, and loved, and you have a voice. Living in the between, we can encourage one another to be strong and courageous. We can be honest that sometimes we are terrified or discouraged. We can march, plod or just breathe together. Ultimately, we can hold tight to the promise of God that He will never leave us nor forsake us.

Yellow Bubbles
Pamela Piquette

Pamela Piquette

Executive Director and Co-Founder of Chronic Joy®

Pamela, a leader and a visionary following God's call to inspire those affected by chronic illness, mental illness, and chronic pain, believes that every precious life impacted by illness is both vital and purposed.

Pamela is a wife of more than 35 years, the mom of three married children, and a grandma of six. She is diagnosed with chronic migraines and other chronic conditions. She enjoys baking sourdough bread and chocolate chip cookies, drinking hot tea, being outdoors, and reading (almost always more than one book at a time).

You Are So Loved

Do you love yourself like God loves you? Do you live like you’re valuable? Do you live like you’re set free?

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