Progress continues even though only three days of mobility lie ahead before I offer myself once again to the surgical altar and awake to six weeks no weight bearing.
Recent memories from my left ankle reconstruction and back fusion remind me that pain, exhaustion, and isolation await. But a divine rest in the process can also be mine if I'll offer the time as a sacrifice.
Since this will be my third orthopedic surgical procedure in ten months and my fifth in four years, I've lived a lot of recovery. Heavy fatigue from the confines of mitochondrial disease only complicates whatever healing process I go through. But the more I accept what this life has allowed, the more I understand how the simple quiet offers ample opportunity to engage the divine in ways many never stop long enough to embrace.
And so I write. I share my hope; the faith that is mine after facing widowhood, single parenting, and now a neuromuscular disease.
Our Sunday sermon closed with this scripture, "And the God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while, will himself restore you and make you strong, firm and steadfast." (1 Pet. 5: 10)
Suffering comes on many levels. And that "little while" can refer to days, months, or even a lifetime. But restoration is ours. God longs to make us strong, firm, and steadfast. Not simply broken by life's unexpected hardships.
So while our "enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour" (1 Pet. 5: 8) with whispers of doubt and fear, I write to remind myself of the hope that is ours in Christ.
No matter the hardship. No matter the pain. No matter the suffering. His love is the constant.
So welcome to Coffee, Faith, and Chronic Disease... where I wake my faith as caffeine flows through my veins, preparing to face another challenged day.
LOVE! :)
ReplyDeleteThanks!!
ReplyDelete