“You are not your diagnosis.” Have you heard this phrase? Commonly spoken to chronic illness warriors both in and outside the Christian community, it’s true. We are not defined by our illness. Our limitations. Our losses. Our physical changes. On the converse, we’re not defined by our health either. Our abilities. Our talents. Our physical […]
Fruit in the Ashes Most of us know the story of Joseph, Jacob’s first son by his beloved wife, Rachel (the one who died near Ephrathah): given dreams of a great future, envied by his brothers, sold into slavery in Egypt, falsely accused of crime, forgotten in prison, and finally not just restored but elevated […]
How much do you know about the place called Ephrathah in the Bible? The ancient name for Bethlehem and the region around it, Ephrath or Ephrathah first appears in Genesis 35:16-20 as the place where Jacob’s beloved wife, Rachel, died. The only Ephrathites mentioned by name in Scripture are Elimelech, his wife, and their two […]
It was a dark and stormy night. In my soul. It had been another day of relentless fatigue, weakness, headache, and other symptoms. I spent the morning in bed, didn’t go to work in the afternoon, and stayed home from the evening Bible study. I finally broke under the attacks both physical and spiritual I […]
by Jasmine Originally published on the author’s blog “If you take this away, God, imagine how much more I could do for you this week.” I catch myself praying this prayer at least every second day. Oh, sometimes it’s not in so many words. It could be as simple as: “God, if you give me […]
A few weekends ago, my parents and I watched the NCAA women’s basketball national championship: the Connecticut Huskies vs the South Carolina Gamecocks. The power, speed, and agility on the court showed a stark contrast to me sitting on the couch with my blanket and cup of tea, my head aching and my stomach trying […]
By Jasmine Originally published on The Gospel Coalition Australia Author’s Note: I wrote this article just over a year after having to leave my job overnight due to the onset of serious chronic illness. As I write this note in April 2022, I’m blessed to have finally received a diagnosis (Mast Cell Activation Syndrome), which […]
This week is our last week in this series on D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones’s book Spiritual Depression: Its Causes and Cure. I hope these chapters have been a blessing to you as much as they’ve been a blessing to me! Today we’re going to look at two of the book’s last chapters, Chapter 19: The Peace […]
I hope you’ve been as blessed as I have looking at these chapters from D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones’s book Spiritual Depression: Its Causes and Cure. After reviewing general considerations, fear and faith, feelings, and trials, this week we’re going to look at Chapters 17 and 18, God’s Chastening and In God’s Gymnasium. God’s Chastening The key […]
While every chapter in Lloyd-Jones’s book Spiritual Depression: Its Causes and Cure is good–so far we’ve looked at the introduction, fear and faith, and feelings–this chapter on trials was one that struck me as immensely applicable to us in our valley of chronic illness. The key verse for his Chapter 16 is I Peter 1:6-7: […]
The Valley