Daily Devotions for Caregivers

Who Planned This?

This morning as I was getting around, I was praying for my son. I do this a lot! lol. His chronic breathing issues are troubling and the medical system seems to be tiring of us. So, I took my concerns to God. I was walking and praying and asking for wisdom to handle the situation in the best way. Of course, I was moaning, groaning, and fussing at God for "letting" this all happen. lol - I know you've never done that, but I do.

I took a brief few minutes to think about what like might have looked like. After all, none of us planned on him having a wreck at 24. There are many such unexpected things that happen to disrupt our plans, though. Am I right?

My mind went to Job. He was wealthy and had no plans of losing all that wealth in a day. Job didn't plan on his kids all dying in a single tragic accident. He didn't plan on getting sick either. But what Job did plan was that he was going to worship and trust God in the no matter whats. Now that's a plan that cannot be interrupted.

When the first rounds of bad news hit Job's heart and ears, he tore his robe and shaved his head to signal that he was officially in a state of mourning. Then he worshipped. Wait! He worshipped and mourned at the same time? Yup. Then when He got sick on top of all of that, He still declared that he was going to continue to trust God. In chapter 13 verse 15, Job says that even if God killed him, he would just keep trusting Him. Now that's a plan that cannot be stopped.

I thought of Joseph, who didn't plan on being betrayed by his brothers and sold off as a slave. Yet, he planned to keep his heart pure toward God in the circumstances. Daniel came to mind. His plan wasn't to get taken captive and be mutilated. But he did plan to maintain integrity with God in the midst of the years.

Today, I plan on worshipping God in my no matter what. That's a plan that cannot be changed. I can worship Him and trust Him whether I get my way or don't. He is still God whether I get everything I ask for or nothing. His kingdom cannot be shaken by my trials. So, I will remind myself that He is still on the throne. He is still King of Kings. He still has the victory. And I declare with Job - Yet, will I trust Him. Will you join me?

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Never Runs Out

This morning, as I was waking up, my mind seemed to already be racing. Some of it was all the stuff I need to get done today - including those that needed to be done yesterday. I'm also dealing with a lot of emotional baggage right now. For some reason, I feel especially lonely. Like alone- alone. I hope you don't understand, but I'm pretty sure you do. As I was wiping the sleep out of my eyes, my mind was running through all this. Over and over and over.

I had to take a couple of minutes to kind of shake myself and remind myself that His peace is still right here. He doesn't have an off switch for when we are sleeping, or not paying attention. His peace remains - it never runs out. Neither does His grace, mercy, and love. They all remain, even when my mind forgets.

Then, I had this thought about how I set reminders on my phone. I have tons of them. lol. I have one for any out-of-the-normal meds for me and Chris. There's one for each of the Bible studies I do weekly. There's one to remind me to clock in M-F as Chris' PCA. Then, I set one to remind me to clock out.

I started thinking that maybe I needed to set one to remind myself about His peace. Maybe I should set a reminder to stop and be thankful. Because when I turned my mind to thankfulness for all He has done, including not abandoning me, my heart got a little lighter and my brain's traffic slowed down. I started thanking Him for His consistent grace, peace, love, and presence in this crazy thing called life. That's when they all (grace, peace, love) all showed up.

Well, it wasn't so much that they showed up - they've been right here with me all along. I just got distracted by all the stuff. Paul told the Roman believers that he knew they knew God and His goodness, but he wanted to remind them of it. (Romans 15:15) So, let this devotion today be your reminder that He won't run out on you. His peace doesn't have an "off" switch. We just have to remember that He's with us - no matter what.

Today, I'll meditate on His ever-abiding presence - even if I don't feel it. I'll remind myself that all He is remains and that He remains with me. He will not run out or pull the plug on His peace today! Will you join me?

Dealing with Disappointment

Maybe we have all had those moments where we were disappointed with God. I know I have had my times for sure. I always thought He was going to come riding in on His white horse and whisk me out of my stress and pain. When it didn't happen like I imagined, I often thought He'd abandoned me. Sure, He sees. Of course, He hears. But what good is it if He doesn't act?

Mary and Martha were disappointed with Jesus. They told Him that if He had been there, then Lazarus, their brother, would not have died. Jesus' reply was that He was the resurrection and the Life. Then, He demonstrated it by bringing Lazarus back from the dead. I can certainly say I've never seen Him do that! But I still believe it.

The day I realized that I was disappointed in Him, after all, He didn't come when I thought I needed Him most. It can be frustrating to feel like He's not acting on our behalf. Right now, I'm in that spot. It seems like He's not doing anything. Now, I know He's here. He's walking with me. He gives me peace - and that's all something, but it's not the one thing I think I need Him to do, right?

So how are we supposed to walk this thing out when it feels like He's not really with us?

Maybe it starts with two things. One that Mary did and one thing that Martha did. Martha told Jesus, I believe you are the Christ, the Son of God who is come into the world. (John 11:27) She said this at the point of her greatest disappointment, in a time when clarity was gone. She was mourning the loss of her brother - and had hoped Jesus would have healed him, yet she still believed.

The second action was taken by Mary. When they told her that Jesus had come to town - she jumped up and ran to meet Him. In the midst of her disappointment, her grief, her pain - she ran to Him anyway.

When we have disappointment, and of course, it will come, then we must declare that we still believe in Him. Declare we are still trusting Him even in the midst of the mess, the confusion, the pain, and the difficulty. And secondly, we must go meet Him - in that place of disappointment. Even when we can't see - we can look to Him. For when we loosen our grip on our own pain and disappointment, we can get a good grasp of His grace.

Today, I will look past disappointment, pain, mourning, and loss - and I'll focus my heart back on His grace. That's the grace that is going to carry me through today and every day. I'll trust Him with my whole heart, disappointments included. I'll tell Him when I cannot see, when I cannot feel, when I am not sure what to think. Then, I'll let Him carry me, see for me - and especially I'll let Him see me. Will you join me?

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31 Days in Psalm 31 devotional book cover

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The Source of Life

Recently, I had some interactions where I felt like others didn't have a clue what it meant to be a caregiver. Maybe they don't understand how demanding it is 24-7. Their request involved traveling, and it's something I wanted to do with all my heart. But as is often the case, it's just not always easy to travel when you are caring for someone else. I felt like they didn't quite "get" my situation.

With the airlines canceling flights left and right, seemingly on a whim, I can't take a chance of getting stuck in another location. As I was working through my dilemma mentally, I realized that most of the time, it's the other way around. People only see us as caregivers and forget that there is a person inside dying to be recognized.

As I was thinking about all of these things, I became very thankful. Why you ask? Because I realized that God sees us fully. He doesn't dish out blessings and spiritual benefits to others and decide we don't get any because we are caregiving.

This morning, I was reading in Romans 8 about how when we are spiritually minded, it is life and peace. I was thankful to be included there - there is no exception that says unless you are busy caregiving. My life is hidden in Him just like every other true believer!

Jesus is the way, the truth, and the life for every believer, caregiver or not. He is the bread of life shared with US too. He is the resurrection and the life for caregivers. When Paul talked about our lives being hidden in Him - we are included! He is the source of life for caregivers. He shares His life with us - He doesn't overlook us, bypass us, or withhold any spiritual blessing from us.

When He looks at us, sure He sees a caregiver. He sees someone who is continually laying down their lives for others because of love. But He sees who we are inside. He knows the callings He placed on us and didn't take them back when we became caregivers. He extends every spiritual blessing and the truth and life to us too! I love that He can see past our caregiver front into our hearts.

Today, I will thank Him for seeing the care I bear as a caregiver, but for also looking past that to the person I am inside. I'll thank Him for continuing to share the bread of life with me and allowing me to see new things in His word every single day. I'll thank Him for revealing Himself to me in new ways and for continuing to walk alongside me even when the way gets rocky and treacherous. I'll remind myself that He is a good God - and He has my heart hidden in His. I believe I can trust Him for one more day. How about you?

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He Remains Faithful

I don't know about you, but it does seem like the world is getting crazier. Maybe it's just that there is so much going on in every arena from politics to schools, churches, and even in our homes. There are so many things to deal with on an emotional level and it can easily become overwhelming. As if caregiving wasn't already overwhelming enough, right?

This weekend was one of those weekends when I began to feel overwhelmed past the normal overwhelm. As I was taking my concerns and friends to God in prayer, I was reminded of something that happened to me several years ago. I was standing in my son's room and I was frustrated, emotional, and overwhelmed. I looked up at the ceiling (as if God lives in the sky - and isn't right here right now), and said, I cannot handle one more thing...

Immediately, I had a thought. Now, since it was smarter than me - I assumed it was God. It was or what?

That thought, simple as it was, sobered me right up and made me think. I thought, what if one more something happened? In that moment, I realized that even if something else happened, I was still going to trust Him.

So, there I was this morning, praying for my friends and taking my over-heavy burdens to Him in prayer, I thought He remains faithful. When everything is going great and it feels like everything is under control, or at least at a level that I feel I can handle, He is faithful. When I am in one of those moments where it seems everything is broken and whatever "normal" is has vacated the premises...He is faithful.

I don't know about you - but I know about me, and I needed to be reminded today that God remains faithful - no matter what. In the Living Bible, 2 Timothy 2:13 says, Even when we are too weak to have any faith left, He remains faithful...

This is good because I feel weak - a lot! What a reminder that He is faithful no matter what wicked and confusing turns life takes.

Today, I will remind myself that He is faithful to me. It's easy to accept His faithfulness to others - but I need to know today that even when I feel weak - He remains faithful - to me. My meditations will be on how He walks through this trip called life with me. He goes as fast or as slow as I need to go. He remains. He remains faithful. I pray today that we are all reminded of His faithfulness so we can trust Him with one more today.

I don't know how long you've been on your caregiving journey, but I've been on mine for almost 14 years. One of my friends is the caregiver for her son who is now in his 40s. Some of you just started on this journey. I'm still a newbie compared to many others!

There's no doubt that the caregiver's journey is a lonely one. The social isolation is often unbearable. Yet, we adjust. BC (before caregiving) I was super social. I went a lot. I fellowshipped a lot. I traveled miles and miles. But for the last 14 years, all of that has been limited.

Others often try to encourage us or cheer us up. But very few are willing to go where we go. Recently, I had a long-time friend who wanted to take me out. At first, it was just for a date. Then he decided he wanted us to spend the day together. I enjoyed our day together, but he has no idea all the hoops I had to jump through. lol. I get other invites from time to time, but I don't answer many of them. What I don't have is people willing to follow me down this road.

Have you looked up and realized that no one came with you? Maybe they wish you well. Some pray for you. Most are truly compassionate and concerned. But few dare to follow. We often give Job's friend a bad rap. They were horrible once they started talking. lol. But before that, they came. They saw. They were not prepared for the depth of grief and sorrow they saw their friend enduring.

Job 2:12 says they lifted their voices and wept. They were so overcome, that they sat for seven days and seven nights in silence. They deserve kudos for showing up, and for being there for their friend.

Maybe you're like me and you've looked up and realized that no one has dared follow you down this road. There may be a few watching from a distance. Many are likely praying for you. But oh for a friend who can follow you down the caregiving road. If you are like me (and hopefully you're not) and you've realized people just can't endure watching our struggle, I have good news. Jesus has followed you every step of the way. As a matter of fact, He continues to take each step with you. Sometimes, when your strength gives out, there are no more tears, and you think you can't take one more step - He will carry you.

Today, I choose to focus on the God who is present. I choose to turn my eyes to the One who is not afraid of the journey. My eyes will be on the One who will never abandon, the One who will never just watch from a distance. God is not afraid to be a part of our stories. I will thank Him for staying on this road with me, for carrying me, prodding me, and sharing His strength with me for this journey as I trust Him for one more day. Will you join me?

Distractions

My mind is still hanging out in Matthew 14! I guess I've really been rolling it over and over in my meditations. Today, I want to just look at Peter. He is the only one who stepped out of the boat. He gets a bad rap for sinking. But no one else jumped out onto the water, not even after seeing him walk on the water. How far he walked or how long he walked don't really matter, do they? It was still miraculous that he simply walked on the water.

Peter did something no one else had the guts to do - even if it was for just a few steps...a few seconds.

But like many of us, Peter got distracted by the storm. As long as he focused on Jesus and working his way to Him, he walked across the water. But when he looked at the storm, it distracted him. Do you ever have one of those days?

We start out with a great attitude determined to work it all out. Then out of nowhere BAM! We get blindsided by something - it could be anything. A bill we didn't expect. Supplies that are not on time. Doctors who don't return our calls - or don't listen to us at all. A phone call with bad news. Or just a loved one who doesn't have the best day. I'm sure you can fill in the blank with one or more things that have distracted you from looking at Him.

For a while, we felt like we were walking on water. Until we looked around and emotionally started sinking. Is there a fix for that? I think so. Peter called out to Jesus - and Jesus grabbed him and got him back into the boat. Then the storm calmed. We can call out to Him - whether we are staying afloat and moving toward Him - or totally sinking. He will get us back into the boat to safety. And He will calm the storm.

He won't condemn us for being distracted by our busy caregiving days. He brings comfort, warmth, peace, and mercy. Then He gently puts us back in the boat. He reminds us that He is still right there. I mean, really - Jesus could have been exasperated at Peter and He could have just started walking back to shore. lol. But He didn't. He reached out His hand with love and care and helped the distracted disciple.

Today, whether I feel like I am emotionally walking on water and getting 'er all done - or if I feel I am sinking beneath the load...I will trust His outstretched hand. I will let Him rescue me. I'll watch as He calms my storm. Maybe it'll be through His wisdom. Perhaps it will be a friend who calls to encourage. It may be that good news makes an unexpected appearance. No matter what - I'll reach out to Him and let Him put me safely in the boat. I'm determined to not let the storm distract me today as I focus my gaze on the Prince of Peace. Will you join me?

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