Daily Devotions for Caregivers

When writing to the Christians in Philippi, Paul reminded them to rejoice in the Lord.  He must have really wanted to emphasize it because he said it twice in Phil. 4:4 - rejoice in the Lord always, and again  I say, rejoice. Many might think that as caregivers we do not have a lot to rejoice about or that we have a right  to be sad or upset. After all, life "cheated" us. We really cannot afford to buy into that lie. Sometimes I have to admit when someone who I think lives in an ivory castle so to speak tells me to rejoice or be thankful, I would like to just punch them. They don't understand real life. Many appear to live a highly protected life free from a lot of the struggles we have to face everyday. And it is true that they are not dealing with our situation. But even among caregivers each of our situations has very different features and circumstances. No two journeys are alike even though we are caregivers. It can be easy to compare ourselves among ourselves an...

One of the things I prayed when I started this caregiving journey was that it would not make me bitter. I didn't want to grow old and angry at life. My prayer was that God would use the pressurized situation to make me a softer person and that it would temper me into a vessel He could use. But let's face it, we have a lot we could complain about. After all, life has dealt us what many would call an unfair blow; our lives will never be considered "normal" again. But I can't complain; or can I? Paul told the Philippians to do all things without grumbling or complaining. (Phil. 2:14) Why did he have to say "all" ? There's not much leeway there - and absolutely no exceptions or disclaimers. But... the caregiver might argue - we have a lot to complain about: we gave up our lives for our loved ones...and we miss it! our helpers didn't show up today medical professionals are not listening to us we've called the doctor 3 times and they a...

"Humble" is not a word many use to describe me! I'm rambunctious, loud, crazy and full of energy. (I run half marathons for fun on my "days off"! lol) Humility or the action of being humble has been misinterpreted. Moses wrote in Numbers 12:3 that Moses was very humble, more than any man on the face of the earth. But by our definition, writing about being humble is in direct contradiction to humility. Humility really means knowing who you are. For the Christian it means knowing who we are in Christ and who God has called us to be; then just walking in it. In Philippians the second chapter, Paul gives us a picture of Christ-like humility. A Christian, one who is Christ-like will: do nothing out of selfishness regard others more important than themselves not look out solely for their own interests Paul goes on to say in verse 5 that these are the attributes of Christ.  This just lets us know that as caregivers, we look like Him as we have discussed m...

Making plans can be difficult when you are a caregiver. Whether you are taking your loved one out for the afternoon, on a longer trip or going out yourself and leaving a sitter with them, it's a lot of work. There can be so many things that have to be thought out and arranged. And then because there are so many unexpected things that can happen in the caregiving situation, plans can easily be thwarted. Having plans interrupted can be particularly frustrating, especially for those who are not able to get out much to begin with. But it happens all the time. Philippians 1:6 is a reminder that God never  has his plans interrupted. It simply states He who began a good work in you will complete it.  BC (before caregiving) I had dreams and actual plans of traveling internationally. I was headed to Africa in a few short months and had a heart to reach many nations. My plans were dropped when I received word my son was medi-flighted from the scene of an accident. For awhile it rema...

As caregivers we are able to get in there and get things done. It sort of comes with the territory. No matter what our basic personality is, in just a short time of caregiving is good schooling on this topic. We learn rather quickly that in many cases, advocating for our loved one means rolling up our sleeves and getting 'er done. Too bad there's not a Caregivers   University w here we can go to learn the skills needed. We could get a diploma once we learned it all and of course passed our internship  where we learned all the ropes using a hands-on approach. Of course I am speaking tongue-in-cheek as it would be impossible for someone to teach us what we've learned. Of course there is no such school and we are not going to get a diploma for our learning. But we do a lot of learning about a lot of things once we become a caregiver, including things about ourselves. Even though I'm pretty high strung and hyper most of the time I let a lot of things slide as a person...

At the end of the day, we have to be honest with ourselves about everything. I have to look back and wonder if I fully trusted Him or if I tried to take the control of situations on myself. Yesterday, we discussed Psalm 91 and today I want to look at one little phrase: I am trusting Him.  It's found in the last part of verse 2. It demonstrates the present continuous tense. It means, I am trusting Him right now - and I will continue to do so into the future. There are so many things in the caregiver's day/life that are unpredictable. We never know when our loved one might become ill, or suffer a fall even though we are careful and take the necessary precautions. Shipments of supplies often get lost and we have to make purchases to make up the difference; or aides don't show up at their scheduled time. I've had case managers and nurses call to come by at the drop of a hat. And in my instance, I never know exactly how my son is going to take any given day. Some days ...

Something as simple as a flower can be a bright spot in a day. When we walk through the park behind our apartments, we often find wild flowers growing sporadically along the side of the trail. It's been my practice for many years to simply enjoy this random beauty and allow it to lighten my heart. If that's the only reason God made wild flowers, then I am thankful. He usually has a reason or purpose for just about everything, we just don't always discover it right off. This morning I was reading through a psalm that I grew up knowing. My mom read it to me when I was scared or troubled. As an adult I read it to my children as well. Psalm 91 I believe has been misinterpreted over the years to mean that nothing  is going to happen to us if we stay hidden in Him. On one hand, I agree with the concept - our soul (being)  is safe in Him. It is safe from any type of harm. Our body on the other hand, is susceptible to life. As I was reading this familiar passage I paused to t...