Are you wondering how you’re going to get through the holidays? Do you look at others and wish that you had the same joy and excitement as them? Do you feel left out because of health limitations? The reality is that the holiday season isn’t always as joyful or easy for people who live with chronic pain or illness. We often struggle with health flare-ups, places we cannot go, things we cannot do, anxiety, depression, fear of the future, and guilt about not being all we want to be for our friends and family.

When God touches your life, you are changed. You'll never be the same again. You can't go back to what you were before, not that we always want to.

The Lord is good, a refuge in times of trouble. He cares for those who trust in him, Nahum 1:7 Life can be unpredictable and challenging, but faith and trust in God Can help us to overcome tragedy. We can find peace amid such turbulence. The Lord is our refuge in times of trouble, and through Him we can find peace even in the midst of the storm!

When we are overwhelmed it is easy to convince ourselves that no-one understands and that there is no hope. However, not only does our Father in Heaven hear every cry and know every thought, but in addition there are countless others who truly do “get it.” Others who go through the same storms and are all too familiar with the challenges we face.

Guilt, shame, blame and regret all too often keep us looking back over our shoulders and tripping over our feet as we keep trying valiantly to move forward. We tend to wear them like treasured clothing, things that have almost become a part of us and our identity. Sadly, our pain all too often becomes who we are, and our very way of thinking starts to revolve exclusively around that.

The way I read the Word of God it's pretty obvious that God knows me inside and out - in fact, from before I was even born. He knows YOU inside and out too! Every thought, every fear, every doubt, every dream, and every hope. And yet, for some reason I've chosen to live most of my life not only trying to hide my health challenges from those around me, but also trying to 'fix' them so that God can work out His purpose in me.

Sometimes the greatest miracle is the miracle of a changed perspective: The ability to stand EXACTLY where you are, FACING it, without RUNNING or HIDING. It is looking for gold in the dark places and refusing to give up!

Every day I have to make that choice to trust in a God whose thoughts are not my thoughts and whose ways are not my ways. Every morning I give Him my pain and doubt and feel His arms enfold me saying, "I am here and I have not forgotten you."