Today’s a new day! Walking through this crazy beautiful health journey can be a daunting task. Anybody dealing with chronic illness can relate. At times it can feel we are not truly living. On days we are barely surviving how can we possibly live for God? When simple daily tasks overwhelm us, how can we even think of living for and serving God? We know He calls us to live for Him, but what does that look like when you’re walking through a season of suffering?

Before I attempt to answer those questions, let us discuss how to go about living for God. When we think of truly living for God our imagination can lead us to mission work in a third world country or preaching in front of a large crowd. But there are many different ways to walk out our faith. Living for God is simply walking out the words and teachings of God. Striving to live a life that points people to God and brings Him glory. A person dealing with chronic health issues can still live for and make a difference for God. It may just look differently than a healthy person. So, no matter your current condition there are always ways that you can glorify God through them. Here are some lessons I have learned during this crazy beautiful health journey.

1. It’s okay that the way we live for God looks different than the way that healthy people do. In Romans 12:4-5 we read the following words, “For as we have many members in one body, but all the members do not have the same function, so we, being many, are one body in Christ, and individually members of one another.” In his amazing wisdom, God did not create us all with the same gifts or the same circumstances. He doesn’t expect us to serve Him in the exact same way that anybody else does. This is one of the beautiful things about the church. We see how God uses many people in different ways to accomplish things for His Kingdom.

Trying to live for God in a way that is identical to someone else would be so boring. When we attempt to live out someone else’s race, we can become consumed with trying to measure up  to other people that it ends up paralyzing us. Any time our focus shifts from seeking to glorify God, to comparing ourselves with others, it leads to discouragement. The truth is, we can never do as much as healthy people because of our physical limitations, and that’s okay. Serving God isn’t about how much we can do for Him, but using whatever ability we do have for His glory. Focusing on what we are unable to do causes us to stop doing the “small” things that we can do. If we choose to focus on the abilities and opportunities we still have, we are able to live out the gifts God has given us.

Life is not a competition. We miss out on so many opportunities when we try and make life a competition. Serving God in different ways doesn’t make it a lesser way. Even healthy people serve in different capacities. The truth is that nobody, regardless of physical  ability can live for God and serve Him as much as He deserves. He is infinitely worthy, and even if we poured out our entire lives for Him without fail, it would still not be enough. So let’s stop comparing ourselves to others and instead boldly live out the plan God has for your life.

2. God has a purpose for each of our lives and will give us the tools to accomplish that purpose. From the beginning of time, God has been faithful to provide our needs. Any ability anyone has to live for God is a gift from Him. If God is the one giving us the strength to live for Him then we don’t need to rely on our own. We, the chronically ill, are reminded daily of the harsh reality of our weakness. Our weakness is not a hindrance to God. It’s just a different channel for Him to work through. In 2 Corinthians 3:4-5 we read these powerful words, “And we have such trust through Christ toward God. Not that we are sufficient of ourselves to think of anything as being from ourselves, but our sufficiency is from God.” As this verse highlights, a biblical view of our insufficiency leads to increased trust in God. Because we know there isn’t anything in and of ourselves that makes us able to serve Him, we can trust that His love will remain constant. His love remains constant even in the seasons when we feel like we are not able to serve Him the way we desire to. We have to remember, God always provides us with His strength to get through the difficult days. God always provides a way.
3. God knows our limitations and has prepared things that you can do for Him with your current physical state. Our current health situation is not a surprise to God. He didn’t create a plan for our lives only to find out that we cannot do them in our current physical or mental state. Remember, God is sovereign and all-knowing. Before we were born, God knew the seasons of life we would walk through. God knew the challenges we would face. And He designed things for you to do to His glory as you live life with chronic illness. Ephesians 2:10 tells us this; “For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.”

Our limitations are real and valid. We should never be ashamed of our limitations. But through God’s power we can overcome all the limitations and storms life throws at us. God can miraculously work through our struggles in ways that are impossible for anyone but Him.

4. Finally, living life, trusting God, and praising Him in the midst of the storms we face sometimes doesn’t seem very flashy or important. So many times Christians strive to look like super heroes to the world during their season of challenges. But God isn’t concerned  with how we look to other people. Simply being faithful to God in the midst of suffering doesn’t seem like a very big way to serve Him, but honestly it can be harder to persevere in the day to day struggles of life than to do one Huge thing for God. Simply living for God and thriving through our weaknesses can bring Him glory.

As we walk through our season of chronic illness, we will need to be vulnerable and let some people know what we’re going through. That circle of people can be as big or small as you want it to be. But if we do not let people know the struggles we are facing, how will they be able to walk with us during this difficult season? How will they experience the amazing power of God as He works in our lives? We do not have to share every little detail of our daily struggles, but share enough so people can pray for you. If we intentionally hide all our struggles from others, we are potentially robbing them of a blessing and the opportunity to see God at work.

We also have to constantly be in prayer. Our prayers are how we ask God for the strength to live for Him and thrive during this season of discomfort. Prayer is a lifestyle and a huge aspect of living our lives for God.

Joyfulness is one of the beautiful gifts in our walk with God. Our circumstances may be difficult, but when people see that we still have joy even though we are suffering, it points them to God. It is only through Him that we can have true joy, which is not shaped or determined by any circumstance. Where do we get this type of joy? This joy is a result of regularly saturating ourselves with God’s Word. By constantly keeping our eyes fixed on the promises of God. We can live in peace and joy, knowing God has our current situation under control and is working it out for our good.

So, let people see that you are suffering, but also let them see how God is allowing you to thrive and walk in joy during the suffering.

Walking through chronic illness is not easy. Never let anyone tell you how to live out your story. Each day is a struggle, but praise God that He is the one who guides us through those tough days. So, even if the way you serve God looks different than your healthy neighbor it is not lesser. I encourage you to keep leaning into the promises of God, the Author and Finisher of our faith, and keep on living for Him out of gratitude for the blessings in your life. ~OC