Confessions for the "Greatly Afraid"

One of the difficulties of being a full-time caregiver is that life continues around you. It can seem like everyone else's life gets to continue while yours stopped. One example for me, is with my daughter. I figure for her, not only did she lose her brother in this accident, she also lost her mother to caregiving.

So at least once a year, my daughter and I head out of town to have some time together. This was that weekend, and of course, we had a wonderful time together! But then, I still have to come home to the harsh reality of the day-to-day.

As I'm trying to roll out of bed this morning to get the day going, I open my Bible to Psalm 34, no reason really, that's just where it opened to. But I'm glad it did because I gleaned enough to get me through today as I try to get back into the swing of things and catch up with caregiving tasks and work. There are several things that stuck out in the psalm, so we may break it down over the week.

The first part of the psalm stood out to me because the psalmist David took a stand. To set the background we have to consider when this psalm was written. The story behind it is in 1 Samuel 21. David was still running from Saul and in verse 12 it states that he greatly feared king Achish. He literally acted like he was crazy to throw everyone off so he could get away. For me, it's important to realize David had real emotions. He wasn't like a super hero - he was human. The man we recognize as a great warrior wasn't just a little nervous, he was greatly - afraid. And it seems this psalm was born from those moments.

In the first part of the psalm, David makes two declarations. In verse one he says I will bless the Lord. And in verse two, he says My soul will make its boast in the Lord. This can be a game changer for caregivers, as well as for anyone else. There are times when no matter what is going on all around us we have to stand up and say - I will and my soul will....

Today as I shift out of "off work" mode and back into where's my cape mode, I needed to read this. I need to declare that my soul is going to trust in the Lord and that my lips will praise Him, even in the midst of a rocky situation.

Today, my declaration will be I will bless His name, I will praise Him. My soul will rejoice in all He has done. I will turn my thoughts to how He walks this out with me and doesn't abandon or leave me alone. I'll praise Him for the things I see Him working in my life - and thank Him for the things He has not yet done. My meditations will be on how I can bless His name and praise Him today. I'll once again acknowledge Him as God over my life and my soul and I will thank Him. I'll trust Him for one more day - will you join me?

Caregiver Burnout is Real

Do you ever just get too tired? Do you ever want to quit? Do you ever sit down for a whole 30 seconds and think about not getting back up? Ever? Who am I kidding? Sometimes I forget who I'm talking to. Lol. As caregivers, burnout is real. But the problem for most of us, is we don't get a break even in the midst of burnout, right? Let's face it. If we had a bit more help we might avoid burnout - but once we feel that we are in a season of burnout and stressed out - there's still no help. It's easy to feel stuck. I try to do a few things to avoid burnout and to cope. Someone told me one time that I had learned how to live even in the midst of the situation. I think she was right. I have learned to slow down and enjoy an afternoon cup of tea (or coffee!!!). I try to get outside as much as possible because sunshine and fresh air are essential to a healthy life. Some days that means sitting on the patio so I can see Chris in the recliner through the window. But I'

Part of the Crowd

I took Chris to our local minor league baseball team's game yesterday. I must say I give the ballpark an A+ on accessibility. The parking guys pointed me to a handicap spot right near the gate. And from there, I just rolled him in and found our accessible seating - which just means a chair beside an empty spot for the wheelchair to fit in! It was great. He could see fine and even though it was a bit loud at times - it wasn't too loud for him. What joy fills my heart when I find things to do that are positive. As we sat and watched the game, we became part of the crowd. We were all watching the game and cheering on the home team. We had one purpose - besides being entertained, and that was to support the local team. We all cheered when our guys made a play. We hooped and hollered when one of them stole a base or hit a home run. It was so amazing to be part of something bigger than us - to be part of the community. It made me think about the crowds who followed Jesus and the w

Ups and Downs

Maybe it's just "that time of year" for me, but I've struggled a lot the last few weeks. I still affectionately call it the caregiver's fog. Lol. Okay, maybe it's not-so-affectionately. I know I can share my true feelings with you guys because you get it. You understand the day-to-day grind of caregiving. The military has a saying about there being no easy day. I think we live in that reality. It's just not easy caring for another whole person, is it? Caregiving presents many difficulties. We can find ourselves alone, so very alone on this journey. It doesn't just go away. We don't just work through it. It seems to go on and on. There are lots of ups and downs - and that can be about every 90 seconds some days. Right? (smile!) As I've been working through this emotional maze the last few days, I turned my thoughts to Daniel. Let's take a realistic look at his circumstances because as we read his story in the Bible, we tend to glamorize i

Daily Devotions for Caregivers

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