Daily Devotions for Caregivers

Last night was one of those long nights far too many caregivers are familiar with. I was up and down all night with Chris. These nights are the ones that wear on your body, soul, and spirit. As caregivers, we run wide open - and it doesn't take much to send us over the brink. For most of us, the day-to-day is stressful and we hold it together for everyone else while we're not sure we are going to make it. Some of that stems from fear especially as we get older. My own thoughts war against me when I think about how much longer I'll be able to care for my son. How many long nights can this old body endure? lol. I laugh because it makes it easier and it's better than crying.  The fear is real, though and it makes the long nights wear on my mind longer than on my body. I'll hopefully catch a nap today and sleep tonight and my body will recover. But my mind keeps sparring with my soul.  It's here - in the midst of the storm that it's easy to lose our focus. The w...

This morning I was reading the last few verses of Habakkuk where the prophet said this:   Though the fig tree may not blossom, nor fruit be on the vines; though the labor of the olive may fail, and the fields yield no food; though the flock may be cut off from the fold, and there be no herd in the stalls- Yet I will rejoice in the Lord, I will joy in the God of my salvation. As I read and reread this familiar passage, I thought about the determination behind what Habakkuk said. He was living in tumultuous times kind of like we are - yet he determined to praise God and trust His salvation. As caregivers, I think we do that a lot. We quietly determine not to be swept away by the tide of caregiving. I know you understand those longest days where it takes all we have to keep our heads above the proverbial waters. Many people don't have a clue the types of decisions, choices, and tasks we face each and every day and the toll it can take on us mentally and emotionally. On top of all...

I hear myself use the phrase  as if caregiving wasn't enough  often. Just because I became a caregiver, it doesn't stop the rest of life from happening, right? It really seems like there should be an exemption card though since our plate is already full. But I guess in fairness if we were exempt from bad stuff, we'd have to be exempt from good stuff too.  The world was crazy enough and then went into hyper-cray0cray mode a few months back. I have to avoid the news most of the time to keep my own head in the caregiving game and prevent myself from crashing into the emotional abyss. But I do know there is still a pandemic (an added worry for the caregiver), riots everywhere, shootings, protests, and lots going on out there. As if all that wasn't enough - I saw this morning that China has a case of Bubonic Plaque - unheard of for years. It's enough to drive you to the brink of crazy or depressed.  As I was thinking about all this, I was like, what else?   We m...

I meditate a lot on Psalm 46:10 which says to, Be still and know I am God.  I even wrote a little song about it and lately, I've sung it quite a bit. Many of the blog posts on this devotional for caregivers are focused on just being still and knowing He is God. He is the one constant in the caregiver's life; the one thing (person) that doesn't change in what can be a very fluid life. This morning I started thinking about this verse and my thoughts led me to how He is a shelter for me. He's the only place I can run to and find peace, hope, and unconditional love. My thoughts turned to running to Him and I thought, I don't have anywhere else to run to.  Then, I thought, I am not looking for someplace else to run to. Lol. Even those times when faith is wearing thin and I cannot seem to find Him in my day-to-days, I still run back to Him. I do not have a safer place to run to. Even in the thick caregiver's fog, I still keep running to Him. My "be still" an...

Over the weekend, I started a new project. It's a branch of another one I started earlier. Right now I am just studying it, but it might end up being a devotional. I wanted to take a look at the declarations made by the psalmists. Many psalms start out with honest, raw emotions, go into a prayer, and end with a declaration. That's not always the case, but there are lots of declarations made throughout the psalms, and they are usually in the midst of a trial of some kind.  The declaration in Psalm 3 stood out to me as I started on this journey through the Psalms. As usual, the psalm starts with the problem at hand. David is running from his son, Absalom who is trying to dethrone him. He cries out to the Lord about his situation. Lord, how they have increased who trouble me! Many are they who rise up against me. I think we can relate on some level here. As if caregiving wasn't enough in our lives we have now lived through a pandemic. And as if a health crisis wasn't enoug...

There is so much going on in the world around us, since I am about being honest and transparent, I must say I am overwhelmed. As if caregiving wasn't enough to carry we had the national shut down in response to the Coronavirus plus the fears of loved ones contracting it. Now there is racial unrest, rightfully so. And to top it off there is rioting and threats being made to our safety daily. Sometimes I do wish we got an exempt card from the rest of life when we become caregivers. lol. But if we skipped the bad  - we'd also have to skip the good, right? On top of all of this shared load, I've had a couple of situations at work that have made me feel devalued, less than. For someone who struggles with self-esteem and rejection it makes it tough to focus on the truth, you know? Life is just heavy right now for all of us - or at least for anyone paying any amount of attention. It's so heavy I feel it weighing on me physically and I cannot seem to get out from underneath the...

I'm still pulling stuff out of Hosea 2, so bear with me because I'm getting a lot out of this little passage! I hope you are too. Yesterday we looked at how He brings comfort and provides in the midst of the wilderness. Today, let's look at the next little bit - it's powerful, I'm telling you! Verse 17 says this: I will give her vineyards from there , and the Valley of Achor as a door of hope. What's interesting is that "Achor" means pain. Caregivers are familiar with pain and loss. It doesn't matter what type of caregiving you do, there are lots of responsibilities that go with taking care of another whole person. There will be losses, good days and bad days, sorrow and joy, self-sacrifice, and pain. But right there in the Valley of Pain, God provides a door of hope.   God always has hope for us on reserve - He never runs out. Even in the longest, darkest night - He provides hope. Sometimes it appears as a small glimmer of light - but it is ...