Good Days...Bad Days With Maureen Pratt

How often do you give thanks each day? I try to sprinkle liberal doses of thanks throughout mine. And, besides the obvious – that thanks is a prayer to God that I am grateful for even the smallest thing in my life – being thankful has helped me appreciate the good and sweep away stress from…

Okay, I confess to a bit of juvenile fun. Plants, fish, even the hummingbird that visits each year – I have a name for them all. Even if it is “Silly” or “Birdie,” each flitting, swimming, and growing thing gets some sort of name. And with that name, comes a sort of funny familiarity that…

So often, we talk about stress as something that comes to us from without. Traffic, work, a new diagnosis, disappointment over how a loved one reacts to our illness, or other factors happen outside of us and can stir up a mound of stress that has all sorts of ill effects for us and our…

Oooh, they’re getting longer, not shorter, those waits in doctors’ offices. And, if you’ve exhausted all those rat-eared magazines and examined drab artwork long enough, you’re probably feeling impatient, patient. Edgy, perhaps. Or, even angry. But, wait! (as if you want to do more of this…) The more impatient, angry, and irritated you become, the…

Do not conform yourself to this age but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and pleasing and perfect. —Romans 12:2 Sometimes, don’t you just feel like numbers on a lab report or a pin cushion? Ever pointed this out to…

One of the things that can be very damaging to lupus patients is something that many people are already enjoying to the hilt in the early summertime: Basking in the glow and warmth of the sun. Unfortunately for many of us lupies, the rays of the sun (UVB, UVA) can cause the disease to become…

Oh, my word, another diagnosis. Just when I thought I’d “collected the whole set” of lupus-related, autoimmune illnesses, I’ve been given another. And with it is another medication, monitoring by another specialist, and all the other things that go with it. More about the diagnosis later. In this blog, I wanted to give a few…

Heavenly Father, during this weekend of Memorial Day, I lift up to you each man and woman who has given service to our nation, especially those who, because of their sacrifice, have returned disabled. Be with them in their darkest hours. When they feel weak, give them your comfort. When they feel despondent, give them…

Early on in my journey with lupus, a Christian said to me, “You’re not cured because you’re not faithful enough.” When I challenged her on this, she said that she though God was punishing me for my “lack of belief!” I’ve never believed that illness in our lives was a punishment from God. He loves…

Dear Heavenly Father, Yesterday I saw a person who seemed troubled. We did not exchange a word, but I saw within weary eyes, a very weak light. I do not know what this person is enduring, nor do I have a name or an address. But, Lord, I know that you know, And I also…

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