My head is throbbing with the pain of a migraine as I write this post. Thankfully, my migraines are not chronic, but they happen more often than I would like. I have friends and family members who suffer with far more severe, and some with chronic health challenges. While these are often inconvenient, and frequently physically painful, we can still choose to thrive.
I have a brother who lives with a rare form of skin cancer, yet obtained his Doctorate degree, has launched multiple companies, has a beautiful family and is thriving.
One of my sisters was born with an AVM. She’s had multiple risky surgeries and yet is living the life of her dreams. This young woman is newly married, recently bought a farm and is working in a business that she loves. She’s thriving. (Read her story here.)
My Mother in law has lived with Rheumatoid Arthritis for most of her life, but she chooses to live every day loving on her grandbabies and thriving. Last June, my in-laws celebrated their 50th anniversary and the entire family zip lined over Niagara Falls together on their exact wedding date. I call that thriving and doing life big!
Health challenges can set us back physically, mentally, emotionally, even spiritually.
Sometimes we question “Why must I walk through this?” All I know is God has a plan, one that will bring Him glory and honor, a plan that will bring healing… in his time.
I won’t pretend that I have all the answers and I don’t know why we must sometimes suffer, perhaps it’s a test of faith? Perhaps it’s something else. The one thing I DO know is that we have a choice every single day.
We can choose to merely “survive” or we can choose to THRIVE.
We can do what we are able to. And we can do it with a great attitude.
Several years back, I had a reactive lymph node removed from my neck. The procedure left me with temporary nerve damage and I was unable to communicate clearly. The left side of my tongue was temporarily paralyzed. Speaking, and even eating were painful and difficult, for months. I began to question if I would ever communicate clearly again and for a short time, I let worry and fear control my life.
Then something shifted inside me.
I began to change my mindset as I realized I could move forward and I could thrive, even if I was communicating differently than before. God wasn’t finished with me yet! I was alive and I was still breathing.
I created a video and posted it to social media where I declared healing in the name of Jesus over myself. Friends and family prayed in agreement with me. I came to a place of peace where I trusted that God knew best. I hoped and prayed and believed that he would heal me, but if not, I would intentionally choose to move forward and thrive anyway.
A short time later, God chose to heal me! My nerve damage reversed and my speech was completely restored. God is a healer and he saw fit to bring physical healing, all for his glory. I no longer take for granted the ability to speak and I empathize more than ever with those who are “different” and those who are going through physical challenges.
Around the same time I had the reactive lymph node removed, I found a small lump at the base of my skull. Multiple doctors believed it to be scar tissue from a previous injury. For a while, I worried about it and I questioned: “Could it be something more?”
After months of prayer and doctors all giving me the same opinion, as well as no change in the lump, I came to the conclusion that it’s a “God bump.” It’s his little reminder that he is in control and he’s got me covered. I don’t need to worry because God is already there. He’s working on my behalf, so all I need to work on is thriving: for HIS glory!
If you’re living with chronic pain, you have my empathy. If you’re choosing to thrive regardless of your “God bump”, you have my utmost respect. We were created to thrive, not just to survive. You’re still here, living and breathing. God’s not finished with you yet! You were made to THRIVE!
{The Happiness Memorandum} just released! It’s a step forward in truth, defining who we are in Christ and declaring that we have the power to choose what our life looks like, every single day. It’s a beautiful one-page printable and you can grab it for FREE here!
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