The world can be an inaccessible place for those who live with daily pain or nausea, dysregulated blood sugar or body temperature, intractable migraine, bleeding disorders, GI issues, food allergies, environmental sensitivities, extreme fatigue, and more. Chronic Joy®
Chronic Illness
We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed. (2 Corinthians 4:8-9)
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Chronic means persisting for a long time. So then, chronic illness is illness that has persisted for a long time, and living with it isn’t easy. You can feel hard-pressed on every side, perplexed, persecuted, struck down, weary, overwhelmed, and at the end of yourself – BUT you are still here!
Through every hard day, you persevered, stuck it out through each new symptom, endured appointments and pain, continued through countless frustrations, withstood tests and procedures, coping with loss, navigated medication changes, stuck with changing treatment plans, and persevered through exhaustion that felt like trudging through wet cement.
You have suffered and survived, persisting even when you didn’t think you could.
Perseverance is a powerful thing and something we don’t often celebrate.
Take a minute and think about this. What has it cost you to get to this day? Think about how many tests you have endured. How much pain have YOU suffered? How many times have you wanted to give up?
But you didn’t.
Pastor Greg Laurie writes, “I have seen Christians have the strongest faith in the hardest circumstances imaginable.”
Today, celebrate your tenacity.
You have persisted.
What if you don’t feel peace today? What if you question whether you’ll ever again taste joy?
Jesus answered that in John 16:33 “I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world, you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.”
In this world, we will have trouble — but suffering isn’t the end of the story. Jesus has overcome the world. He endured, he survived, and he persisted.
There’s even more! In Ephesians 2:14, Paul writes that Jesus is our peace, right in the messy midst of it all – in the midst of illness, in the midst of suffering, and in the midst of pain and unimaginable challenges – Jesus is our peace.
AN INVITATION
Today, we invite you to step in, slip off your shoes, and stay awhile. Read. Listen. Explore. Discover.
Chronic Joy isn’t a place of quick fixes or savvy advice. We don’t offer pat answers or simple solutions. Instead, we invite you into community as together we learn, share, wrestle, pray, and lean into the precious truths of Scripture.
Pause, rest, and care for your soul today. Nurture your heart and lean into the still small Voice that says, “You are my beloved and I delight in you” (Zephaniah 3:17).
Step through these doors and discover:
- easily accessible tools
- fantastic free printables
- encouraging images
- engaging books and publications
- inspiring posts, devotionals, and prayer guides
Come, explore — and stay awhile.
We’re so glad you’re here. Welcome home!
What is the most unexpected blessing of chronic illness?
“What is the most unexpected blessing of chronic illness?” (Cindee Snider Re)
What if illness – the stripping away of our health, our dreams, our understanding of who we are and what our future holds – is really a gift?
“What if illness – the stripping away of our health, our dreams, our understanding of who we are and what our future holds – is really a gift?” (Cindee Snider Re)
Describe chronic illness in five words.
“Describe chronic illness in five words.” (Cindee Snider Re)
God has graciously sewn laughter into our days, bright moments tucked among the shadows of illness and pain…
“God has graciously sewn laughter into our days, bright moments tucked among the shadows of illness and pain…” (Cindee Snider Re)
“Our culture habituates us to noise, to rushing, to an inhuman pace. When illness forces you to stop – to spend days or months or years in diminished activity – there may be a hidden mercy.” Mary C. Earle
“Our culture habituates us to noise, to rushing, to an inhuman pace. When illness forces you to stop – to spend days or months or years in diminished activity – there may be a hidden mercy.” (Mary C. Earle)
The longer I live with serious chronic illness, the more I pray for my faith to be deepened.
“The longer I live with serious chronic illness, the more I pray for my faith to be deepened.” (Maureen Pratt)
With a chronic illness you can’t wait to enjoy life.
“With a chronic illness you can’t wait to enjoy life.” (Karen Dockrey)
Life becomes inspiring, not in spite of the problems and the hard hits, but because of them.
“Life becomes inspiring, not in spite of the problems and the hard hits, but because of them.” (Joni Eareckson Tada)
What is the hardest thing about chronic illness?
“What is the hardest thing about chronic illness?” (Cindee Snider Re)