Daily Devotions for Caregivers

Each caregiving journey is unique. We all have so many different variables that come into play, it's really hard to compare our situations. But I'm pretty sure we've all become great jugglers along the way. I won't even try to list all the different things we deal with on a given day. And while it's different for each of us, there are still numerous elements we must juggle just right, so that we don't drop anything important. Of course, it's all important. It's funny how the littlest thing can send the entire day, along with our emotions off course. Oh we're good. We'll figure it out and get through the day, the week, the situation, etc. Because each of us have become the GOAT at juggling.  Our experiences may bring out a laugh - but we know it's true! We could probably just look at a single area and realize how much we plan, organize, and juggle. And most likely that is every single day. I've got quite a list of them running through my h...

 This morning, I found myself in Numbers 6. At the end of the chapter, God, seemingly out of the blue, just tells Moses to bless His people. He gave Moses exactly what the priests were to say to "put His name" on the Children of Israel. You've probably heard these few verses many times in various Christian gatherings. Many times, it's used by those in ministry to "bless" the people before they leave in a benedictory fashion. But when God gave the blessing to Moses, He didn't give him a specific time for Aaron and his sons to speak the blessing. He just told them to use it to put His name on His people and bless them. (v.27) You are probably familiar with it, but it goes like this: The Lord bless you and keep you; The Lord make His face shine upon you, And be gracious to you; The Lord lift up His countenance upon you, And give you peace. That's a lot if you stop and think about it. He blesses us and keeps us AND gives us peace!  As I thought about thi...

  This morning, I did my Facebook live devotions on seeking God. I'll share the video below, but I talked about how He meets us when we take the smallest step toward Him. He rises to meet even a gentle movement as we turn our souls toward Him - even without words. That's a good thing, because as a caregiver, I often run out of words. When circumstances roll over your soul over and over like the roaring ocean's tide, you can run out of words to say and pray. It's okay, though, because God knows. He is tuned into the slightest heart sigh. And He gets everything  behind it. The rest of the world may not get it. They may choose to ignore it, or just never understand it at all - But God sees the whole thing and comprehends all the things we can't form the words to say. People can be quick to condemn and tell us we don't have faith. Some have said that I'm not trusting God. That used to bother me - but now I laugh because I'm pretty sure they have no clue what...

 This morning, it's cloudy and rainy here. I like a nice rainy day now and then. When I was a kid, I'd curl up with a book or two and read the day away. Boy, how I wouldn't love one of those kinds of days right now! But for the caregiver, it is not meant to be. Lol. But the cloudy day did help spark some deeper thoughts that I've been rolling around. Do you ever go through those times when you can't see or feel God? One thing I've tried to do with this blog is to be gut-level honest about emotions, thoughts, and all the crazy parts of being caregivers. There are days when I don't see or feel God's hand at work in my life. Many of my middle-of-the-night experiences have led to me crying out to God and asking Him if He sees us. If He hears us. And IF He does, why isn't He answering? But in most Christian circles, those raw emotions and legit questions are not allowed. They show a "lack of faith." But do they? On this cloudy day, I cannot see ...

  The other day, I stepped outside for a couple of minutes and noticed there was a woman sitting on the curb across from the pond down the road a bit. I had this urge that I just wanted to go sit with her. She seemed lost in thought, but I couldn't tell if she seemed stressed or not. I didn't have any words, just wanted to sit down beside her and be there. Immediately after this interesting urge, I thought of what a blessing it would be for someone to just come sit by me. The support it would offer would be amazing.  Oftentimes, there are no words, not even comforting ones, that "work." But having someone just "be" with you can mean the world. This led my thoughts to Job. When his world came crashing down, his friends came. They were so overcome with grief when they saw his physical state, that they couldn't speak. This, of course, turned out to be a good thing. Lol. They simply sat there with Job for a week with no words spoken. But they were there. Whe...

 This morning, I did my Facebook Live devotions about "one more thing." (See video below.) I took the thought from Paul's teaching in Colossians 3. In verses 12 through 15, he touches on several points, including forgiveness, patience, God's love, and His peace. At the end of verse 15, he says, "And always be thankful." It was as if he said, oh, and one more thing... That's a positive one more thing , right? But personally, lately, it seems like I've had a lot of one more things that just add to the daily load. Maybe it's just me; I don't know. But it sure feels like each week, there are tons more "little" things to add to my daily load. For instance, I have been paying on a life insurance policy for about 8 years and never heard a word from them. Last week, they suddenly needed to visit with me. It was nice since they could do it using Zoom, but it was still just one more thing on a very busy day for me. And we made absolutely no c...

 Most of us have specific scriptures that we hold onto. My mom's was Isaiah 26:3 that says God will keep those in perfect peace, as we keep our minds on Him. Psalm 57:1 has been an anchor for my soul since 1986 when I ill, and the doctors couldn't find anything wrong. It speaks of trusting Him and remaining under His shelter until calamities have passed. One I've come to cling to in my caregiving journey is Isaiah 43, that promises the flood won't overflow us, and the fire we walk through won't devour us. Even when we are holding on to God with every ounce of strength we have - there's this in-between part. it happens between the promise and fulfillment. There's a period of time that becomes more about the journey. God sent Moses to get the children of Israel out of Egypt. But as soon as they ran into difficulty at the Red Sea, they started talking about dying. They lost sight of where they were going, and the Who - had brought them out of Egypt with a might...