Chronic Joy’s New Volunteer Prayer Pond Coordinator
We are delighted to officially welcome Bettie Gilbert as Chronic Joy’s brand new Volunteer Prayer Coordinator!
Bettie is a beautiful soul with a huge heart for prayer who has been with us since the very beginning. (You’ll learn more of her story below.) Bettie will welcome and invite our community into prayer through Scripture, short prayers, worship songs, inspiring links, conversation starters, and engaging prayer prompts. Her love and compassionate care may also find it’s way to your mailbox (or email inbox) when you request prayer at our website.
Stop by the Chronic Joy Prayer Pond page and welcome Bettie. We know you’ll love getting to know her as much as we do! Here’s a little bit more of her story:
In Her Own Words – Bettie Gilbert
Before my diagnosis with Rheumatoid Arthritis almost 5 years ago, I had been known as the strong one, serving in so many different capacities at church, being a Mom and a Grandma, gardening, home-making and caring for neighbors. But after my diagnosis, it seemed that weakness was to become my way of life. One diagnosis after another followed: Fibromyalgia, Osteoporosis, Sjogren’s syndrome, Occipital Neuralgia.
A Voice in the Weakness
But I began to hear a voice in the weakness, One which I recognized as the voice of my dear Savior. While I felt so full of shame over the weaknesses that I bore, I heard Him whispering to me, “Come inside with Me. I am already here, and I am not offended by your pain or shame. I want to just be here with you.” In all of my years of serving and being the strong one I had spent so much of my devotional time searching out Scriptures and prayers that would help those I cared for. God always met me personally as I prayed for others. But this new place of being stopped in my tracks and resting with Jesus was a new way of living.
Into that time of resting the Lord asked me to be transparent about the struggles and the joys I would face on this journey and to share what He asked of me through a blog. I had no experience in this online world. In between my busy serving times, there were days that I had squeezed in moments of reading blogs, and had always felt so blessed. But as I began to obey God by sharing what He put on my heart, I was amazed that where I had felt so alone in the chronic illness journey I suddenly was stumbling onto the writings of others who were also walking the path of chronic illness.
Discovering Hope – What a Blessing!
And that is how I came across the launch team for Chronic Joy’s first book, Discovering Hope, by Cindee Snider Re. What a blessing that book became, as I sat with Jesus and asked Him to show me what He wanted to teach me through the Scripture reading and questions. I saw so many places in my heart where Jesus wanted to bring me His help, but I had kept my heart stubborn and shut away. How could He actually bring me a blessing through this physical weakness? Oh, but He did! He gave such intimate times of resting with Him, as I finally began to pause and open my heart just to worship and cry out to Him.
Finding Purpose
A few years later, when Chronic Joy opened the launch team for Cindee’s next book, Finding Purpose, I opened my heart again. Could He possibly give me a purpose statement here, in the middle of some of my hardest days? Again my stubborn heart resisted, but yes, He did answer my cry, and He asked me to hear His words for me. Even today, all these months later when so many days seem anything but clear, He has kept His purpose clearly echoing in my heart:
Through all of my weaknesses, He is sufficient in me, and my heart will glorify Him there.
The uncovering of my stubborn heart has not finished, as He continues to show me areas where I have wanted to be sufficient in my own strength still. Places where I have resisted leaning into the staff of my Savior. Places where I have wanted to be in the sheep pen with the strong sheep. But as I allow Him to have His way in my stubbornness, He shows me the deeper joy of being weak, of being carried on His shoulders. He never forgets one of His weak or lonely lambs. He goes after each one of us who feels forgotten by the world.
Linking Hands, Embracing Joy
So, it is from a place of my own weakness that I join with the team at Chronic Joy today. Linking hands with all of you, dear sisters and brothers, as we come together to embrace the joy of our dear Shepherd. He is sufficient for us, no matter how deeply the weaknesses may threaten. He is the reason we gather to lift our prayers. He is the reason we take joy in offering our hearts to Him. He is the ONE who longs to just be with us so that we may more fully know Him and glorify Him right here.
But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong. 2 Corinthians 12:8-10 NIV
Bettie Gilbert
Volunteer Prayer Coordinator
You can find Bettie blogging from her home in a small town in Southeast Wisconsin, at bettiegsraseasons.com. She is on a journey of walking forward with Jesus, in the middle of her own pain and weaknesses from multiple chronic illnesses. The beauty of nature is a joy that always calls to her, as well as the joy of her family and seven young grandchildren. She and her husband have been married for over 40 years and take great joy in their weekend coffee breaks together.
Posts by Bettie
My One Word – Sufficient
Worry and Concern – An Allegory
As the Holidays Approach
Welcome, Bettie! I am encouraged by reading your introduction, that you are joining hands with us and we are offering our prayers together from our weaknesses! This is something I still struggle with, to feel that I will BE accepted, worthy, and useful in my weakness, and to let go of my need to always be strong and DO. I look forward to reading your blog and your futures posts and prayers!
Thank you Kathy for your warm welcome here. Yes, I too continue to trust Him as He calls us to come closer to Him in the very places of our weaknesses. HE is our strength right there. I am so grateful we can join hands together in prayer!
I am so glad you are here Bettie ! 🙂 Thank you for your encouragement and inspiration.
Thank you Melissa! You are a blessing and encouragement also. I pray that the Lord will bring us all more of His heart as we follow Him. Love and blessings to you!
I, too, am so glad you are here, Bettie! I am a witness of how God has already used you to encourage many, myself included! Love and blessings to you and your ministry here! I noticed the link to Prayer Pond is on Facebook. I’m not on Facebook but I pray God will use you for many!
Dear Trudy, I am also so very thankful for all of the ways that God has allowed us to pray for each other. And yes, we do have the Prayer Pond page on Facebook, but there is also the main Prayer Pond page right here. If you click on the drop-down menu for prayer, you will be able to scroll down, and find a place to leave a prayer request, and then you can scroll further to pray over the other requests. When you do, you can click on “I prayed for this,” and that person will get a short email notifying them that “someone prayed for you.” It has become such a blessing to me already!
Bettie! I am just so delighted that you are here! And that you will be coordinating the Prayer Pond! You are/and will be a blessing. I pray that as you refresh others – you yourself will be refreshed.
Dear Terry,
Thank you for your sweet and kind words. His refreshing is such a gift! I pray that we will be able to offer those refreshing prayers here for each other.
What a blessing you are to so many, dear Bettie. So glad you are joining here to share your love and prayers with all. Much love!
Thank you Dear Gayl. I appreciate all of your love and support through so many days. May the Lord bless you as you care for those in your life with chronic illness also. Love and hugs to you!
Thank you Chronic Joy Ministry, and Pamela & Cindee, for including me and allowing me to join you here. I am so blessed and humbled to be part of God’s working here. Love you all!
Welcome Bettie! What a joy to have you facilitating our direct connection with God!
Thank you Dear Wendy for your warm welcome! And yes, I pray that we will all be able to share in that joy from Him as we join in praying together.
Oh, how wonderful to see God opening this new amazing opportunity for dear Bettie! She has been such a blessing to me for so long, and I love her heart for God. May the Lord bless this new endeavor and all that you do here.
Dear Cheryl,
Thank you for your sweet and encouraging words! I pray that our Lord will bring HIs blessings to us as we share in praying and rejoicing together.
Dear Bettie, how moving and powerful your testimony of having chronic illness is, including the surrender it continually asks of you. It’s so inspiring to hear how your very weakness has been a means whereby God has revealed His joy in adversity, His endless kindness and compassion, and unlimited grace and strength. I’m delighted and encouraged to see you taking on the Prayer Pond Coordinator mantle here! A role that is a natural fit for your God-given gifts, and one that will be a blessing to many. Sending much love, blessings and congratulatory hugs across the pond! <3
Dear Joy, Isn’t our Lord so amazing in the ways that He meets us? We think that we need to be so strong for Him, but He knows that we need His help so much! I am so grateful for the Lord’s comfort and encouragement that you have shared with me so often along this chronic illness pathway. I pray that Jesus will let that same comfort overflow to each heart that shares a burden here. May the Lord join us all together to see more of His great sufficient grace for us. Love and blessings and hugs to you too dear friend! xoxo