Posts Categorized: health

Keeping Our Eyes Fixed (Faithful) to Christ

Scripture

Mark 5:28,34  For she said, “If I touch even his garments, I will be made well.” . . . And he said to her, “Daughter, your faith has made you well; go in peace, and be healed of your disease.”

Devotional

 

Yesterday could be summed up in one word.

Overwhelmed.

Many of you have been praying for my family, and I thank you deeply. It has been a very rough week. My pain and insomnia are so severe that I can’t function very well. By the time I made it for my son’s archery practice, my body and mind had enough. I melted down into tears and couldn’t stop them from coming.

Just a glance at my webpage tabs yesterday, would tell you what I spent my day doing. On the one side were scriptures and commentary on the woman who touched the hem of Jesus’ garments to be healed, and on the other multiple medical sites were open researching answers for my family’s myriad of illnesses. The woman who had sought medical care had spent 12 years without relief. She was an outcast and now broke with failed medical treatments. I think she might have shed some major tears. Then she hears about this great healer . . . he’s the answer, I just know it!

Do you and I know Jesus is the answer? And if we do, do we also remember that his plan is good for us?  Are you wrestling with a God who just will not fit into a nicely wrapped box? Do you believe that his purposes are greater than your circumstances?

The weight of my family’s health is so heavy that it feels as if my faith might break. I want an outward manifestation that God is good, but I realized last night that I don’t need to touch the hem of Christ’s garment, I have HIM in my heart. Do not take for granted that the greatest miracle in our lives is that when we believe, Jesus chooses to dwell with us. No more law to get to God, the answers are all right there, living with us! Amazing!

So as I close the medical tabs of anxious searching this morning, and determine to trust God’s perfect plan. Maybe he does an outward healing, but I can tell you this much for sure. Our family is changing from the inside out.

We cannot always help the moments of wrestling with flesh, the world, our enemy–we live in the crowded, smog filled, faith-challenging world. But, don’t spiral into fear, depression, and despair because God isn’t answering the way we think he should. A friend reminded me last night, what is God’s greater purpose in my circumstances?

The growth in my family spiritually has been noticeable. My book is in the hands of the publisher. And I certainly can speak bold encouragement into your lives.  None of my physical circumstances have changed this morning, but God is giving peace from the inside out.

Hit the mark of faith. We’ve stepped out of the boat, but we still have to keep our eyes fixed on Jesus.

Prayer:

Father, you are faithful. Help us to deeply root our trust into the rich soil of your promises. When our eyes fail us, help us to breathe in your testimony of miracles. You still do them today! Break the chains of depression that say God will never measure up to our expectations. Thank you for changing my family from the inside out! Amen

 

 

Grander Views in the Middle of Pain

Jeremiah 15:18 Why then does my suffering continue? Why is my wound so incurable? Your help seems as uncertain as a seasonal brook, like a spring that has gone dry.

 

Daniel has been in more pain over the last few weeks. His vertigo and sensitivity to any kind of car motion has ended up in several episodes of throwing up. So our trip to Cedar Point (roller coaster capital of the world) was up in the air as to whether he would enjoy.

Much to my surprise and delight, Daniel worked within his limitations and enjoyed his time. But I questioned the wisdom of one chosen ride. Spinning 300 feet in the air at 30 miles an hour didn’t exactly sound vertigo friendly. He wanted to try anyway. He did fine as we went up, but as soon as the swings began to circle around the nausea began. I held his hand and told him to look forward. Vision better focused he could now take in the scenery and exclaimed. “It is beautiful! God is so creative! Wow, is this all one lake?”

Oh, what a glorious view I received as a parent! I breathed in my son’s joy and suddenly my own heartache diminished. Daniel could see God’s glory, even though his own physical struggles felt overwhelming.

We all need grand view reminders, so that when life is at its hardest we see God is bigger and so capable of bringing us through. But, we can’t have them if we have boarded up the windows, locked ourselves in pain, and wait for death to take us. We can only have them if we step out, take a risk, and look outside our problems. Where will you go for your grander view?

 

Love Always,

 

Karisa

 

 

Testimony Tuesday: The Most Exhilarating 5 Minutes

Luke 10 …40But Martha was distracted by all the preparations to be made. She came to Jesus and said, “Lord, do You not care that my sister has left me to serve alone? Tell her to help me!” 41“Martha, Martha, the Lord replied, “you are worried and upset about many things. 42But only one thing is necessary. Mary has chosen the good portion, and it will not be taken away from her.”…

This morning was getting away from me. I was dressed to care for everyone else, but as I removed my bike from the van to put it away, I hopped on instead. As I peddled up our street, hair blowing in the wind, I praised God. The chaos that sought to control me was blown away by the fall breeze. I was smiling as legs stretched and I became winded. A quietness settled my anxious heart because I took 5 minutes to remember, my body matters to God. Because I took 5 minutes, my day looks a whole lot different.

Indulging in Obedience

 

Matthew 4:3 And the tempter came and said to him, “If you are the Son of God, command these stones to become loaves of bread.” 4But he answered, “It is written,

“‘Man shall not live by bread alone,
but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.’”

For two months I have been more intentional about exercise and healthier eating. And for two months my weight has wavered at about the same weight, but never decreased. I have not grown discouraged because I know I am doing the work, but yesterday I asked God why? And he answered.

It is about control. He’s in control, and I am not. Whether it was anorexia or overindulgence, my unhealthy relationship with food has always been all about me. God wants all of me, not just what I choose to give him, and therefore, he is not allowing the needle to move until He matters to me more than results. Will I love him, praise him and obey him if the needle never moves an inch? When I am satisfied with God alone I will no longer be prone to extremes.

Whether food or other addictions, I am convinced and convicted that when God is the center of our universe nothing else satisfies. Jesus rebuked Satan by stating that man doesn’t live by bread alone, but by every word of God. In other words, obedience to God is more important than filling my belly. In the Old Testament story of Babylonian captivity, Daniel and his friends refused to eat the rich food of the king, because God had commanded them not to;he had set them apart. Their obedience was rewarded with better health and position, over those who ate the food. It wasn’t about the food, it was about obeying God. God gives favor in all areas, even in enemy territory when we give control to him.  Trusting that God wants good things for me, I don’t have to take matters into my own hands, which is the starting place of addiction. And, with God in charge I am no longer a slave to food!

When the World Tilts Pray

Please  pray for my husband. He is struggling with severe vertigo and numbness in his leg. If you are one who believes in prayer and fasting for breakthrough, I ask that you join me in praying for my entire family’s health, as well as others who are struggling with illness.

 

James 5:14Is anyone among you sick? Let him call for the elders of the church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord. 15And the prayer of faith will save the one who is sick, and the Lord will raise him up. And if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven. 16Therefore, confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person has great power as it is working.

 

 

Note to My Readers

I was hospitalized on Saturday with Pulmonary Embolism (fancy talk for blood clots in the lungs.) I am doing much better today and will probably be released once they get my meds established.

I praise God for each breath I am given! I encourage you to breathe deeply and live life to the fullest, it is a precious gift given to each of us.

Getting a Leg Up

1 Corinthians 9:22 To the weak I became weak, that I might win the weak; I have become all things to all men, so that I may by all means save some. 23I do all things for the sake of the gospel, so that I may become a fellow partaker of it.

Romans 8:28 And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.

I fell again today, already nursing a sprained foot! As everyone came running to aid the pitiful woman sprawled out on the dentist room floor I laughed. In painful moments, sometimes, laughter is the only sane response. As pain roared through my knee and I struggled back to my feet I didn’t even fool with asking God why?

Instead I asked, what is the advantage of a sprained ankle? Well, for starters, it is forcing me to the doctor because beyond the sprain I was diagnosed with bone spurs and arthritis. There is a reason for my foot pain. I must once again humble myself to ask for help from others. My sprained ankle is putting me in places and opportunities to share the gospel that I would not normally be. Once again I praise God that he is completely able to sustain me! There may be further things revealed and I am open to the possibilities!

God the Ultimate Health Coach: Prospering in more than the spiritual

Endorphins

” Exercise gives you endorphins–Endorphins make people happy and happy people just don’t shoot their husbands. . .they just don’t.” (Legally Blond)

A friend  gave me a pass for 30 days of jazzercise. I can not emphasize enough, whether walking or exercising in a group setting, moving the body is vital to healing from trauma. This week I was stuck. Stuck in my thinking, stuck in overwhelmed mode, and stuck in my reactions to life.

Taking action on the spiritual level was a first good step, and today as I worked my weary muscles I was happy. It was a good kind of ache at the end of class. The kind that says, “That a girl, keep going!” My goal is to be what John describes in 3rd John 1:2-3. “Beloved, I pray that in all respects you may prosper and be in good health, just as your soul prospers. 3For I was very glad when brethren came and testified to your truth, that is, how you are walking in truth.” If Christ came that we might have abundant life then that doesn’t just stop at the spiritual realm. Can you imagine in all aspects of your life prospering? Wow!

This isn’t greed. We tend to limit the word prosper to just money or economic success, but Merriam-Webster defines prosper: to become strong and flourishing or to cause to thrive. How many of us settle for the plain of existence we’re on and never realize abundant life? I’ll be transparent with you, there are many areas that don’t feel prosperous in, but I have witnessed people who at one time stood in my shoes and felt the same way. But they began walking in truth and they now thrive in life. To walk in the truth is to believe the gospel and be a living example of God’s love for humanity. As I journey in all areas my faith walk, my prayer is that one day I can cause others to thrive. For now may our endorphins increase as we move towards abundant life.

1 Corinthians 10:31 So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.

Grief effects our health. It is important to hydrate (I find I get dehydrated more quickly), and eat foods that will encourage and strengthen our bodies. In the weeks after Jonathan’s death my back went out, I had a sever respiratory infection and had seizers that were triggered by insomnia. To say that my body was depleted and not strong enough to carry the load I now bore, is an understatement.

I don’t have much of an appetite these days, but the health choices that I am making are horrendous. You’d think, if you aren’t craving things, that it would be easier to make better choices. But, I went into grief with bad habits and they are now magnified. I have enough to deal with, without adding more pounds to carry.

What does it mean to eat to the glory of God? At its core is acknowledgment that man does not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God. (Matthew 4:4) Jesus had just completed 40 days of fasting, prayer and preparation for ministry. Satan tempted Jesus with food first because Jesus’ body was in desperate need of food. Jesus responded that man’s health does not come just from physical fulfillment.

Throughout scripture, there are so many examples of breakthroughs in the lives of Israel centered around food. Daniel and his friends were put in charge because they honored God by not defiling themselves with the king’s rich foods and their health was better than all of the other candidates. Jesus stated that there are some demonic forces that can only be cast out through prayer and fasting. There is power in what we choose to put into our bodies when it is to the glory of God.

Lord, I long to glorify you in what I eat. Father discipline me to bring scripture to mind when tempted. Help me to enjoy what is before me, and for food to no longer be a hindrance in living on every word that comes from you. Amen.

Suicide & Prevention Hotline

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