{"id":544,"date":"2013-03-11T16:56:24","date_gmt":"2013-03-11T16:56:24","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blog.beliefnet.com\/gooddaysbaddays\/?p=544"},"modified":"2013-03-10T19:16:04","modified_gmt":"2013-03-10T19:16:04","slug":"chronic-illness-worried","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/gooddaysbaddays\/2013\/03\/chronic-illness-worried.html","title":{"rendered":"Chronic Illness: Worried?"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a>I’m embarking on a new leg of my journey with lupus, after learning that one of the medications I’ve been taking for a long while is causing damage to my retinas. The next year will be, to say the least, very telling. The effects may or may not be reversible. The disease may or may not flare badly…Answers will all take time. But right now, I find myself musing on the concept of worrying. Or, rather, how will I paint the coming months? With fearful colors, or softer, less dire ones?<\/p>\n

This morning, I turned to\u00a0Scripture, thumbing through Matthew and pausing at Matthew 6:25-33. In these few sentences\u00a0is beautiful, uplifting assurance, such as : “If\u00a0God so clothes the grass of the field, which grows today and is thrown in the oven tomorrow, will he not much more provide for you, O you of little faith. So do not worry and say, ‘What are we to eat?’ or ‘What are we to drink?’ or ‘What are we to wear?’…Your heavenly Father knows that you need them all.”<\/p>\n

Yes, God knows what we need, what I need, what you need. All the time. Day or night.\u00a0 So, worry should be farthest from mind and heart. But, worry is one of those emotions that is also very, very human. And, as it is human, it is natural, an outgrowth of facing the unknown, especially the unknown that can\u00a0be fraught with difficulty or pain.\u00a0 What, then, do we do with this worry that risees up, quite naturally, from the human condition?<\/p>\n

Fortunately, Jesus gives guidance here, offering a way to get out from under worry. (Matthew 6:33-34): “But seek first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness, and all these things will be given you besides. Do not worry about tomorrow; tomorrow will take care of itself.”<\/p>\n

How hard it is in today’s world to focus on today and not worry about tomorrow! We are surrounded by calendars, reminders, forecasts, and prognostications. We mark the passage of time, not by the minute, but by milestones that we anticipate, looking forever forward and oh, so often, forgetting the ground on which we stand now, and the specific task at hand.<\/p>\n

The passages from Matthew’s gospel give us a very potent and practical guideline for identifying worry and substituting it for a focus on God, on the Kingdom of God, and on today. Today, prayer is within our capability. Today, trust in God. Today, look to the many blessings we’re given. Today, build spirit and strength so that, no matter what tomorrow brings, we’ll be even more filled with courage and God’s light than before, and moreover, we will have conquered worry!<\/p>\n

Blessings for the day,<\/p>\n

Maureen<\/p>\n

Fortunately<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

I’m embarking on a new leg of my journey with lupus, after learning that one of the medications I’ve been taking for a long while is causing damage to my retinas. The next year will be, to say the least, very telling. The effects may or may not be reversible. 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She expected to be writing scripts. God had other plans. A few years after her graduation, Maureen was diagnosed with a life-threatening case of organ-involved lupus. Her life turned upside down as she grappled with the effects of the illness and other health conditions that ensued. She was no stranger to serious health challenges; even as a child, Maureen had survived numerous bouts of pneumonia, flu, and other infections. But lupus made her take a fresh look at her life goals - and took herlifelong, strong Catholic Christian faith and writing in a direction she'd never imagined. Today, Maureen writes and speaks about walking with the Lord while living with chronic pain and illness. Her most recent book is \"Don't Panic!: How to Keep Going When the Going Gets Tough (Franciscan Media). She is also the author of, \"Peace in the Storm: Meditations on Chronic Pain & Illness\" (Image Books\/Randomhouse), \"Beyond Pain: Job, Jesus, and Joy\" (Twenty-Third Publications), \"The First Year: Hypothyroidism, Second Edition\" (Perseus) and \"Taking Charge of Lupus: How to Manage the Disease and Make the Most of Your LIfe.\" She writes the syndicated column, \"Living Well,\" for Catholic News Service, and has also written for Saint Anthony Messenger Magazine, Journey for Women Magazine, The Upper Room Magazine, LupusNow, and Arthritis Today. Maureen's health continues to be a challenge, however she feels honored to be able to bring her perspective, from experience and knowledge, to others. \"Good Days...Bad Days with Maureen Pratt\" is a new way for Maureen to reach people who carry the burden of illness and pain in their lives, or who care for someone who does. Through the blog, she hopes to bring issues of health, wellness, and spirit into focus and, especially, inspire others that, no matter what health challenges, illness, or hardships they endure, each person can find a good way to realize the wonderful potential God has placed within each heart and soul.","sameAs":["http:\/\/www.maureenpratt.com"],"url":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/gooddaysbaddays\/author\/mpratt"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/gooddaysbaddays\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/544","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/gooddaysbaddays\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/gooddaysbaddays\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/gooddaysbaddays\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/548"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/gooddaysbaddays\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=544"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/gooddaysbaddays\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/544\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":546,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/gooddaysbaddays\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/544\/revisions\/546"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/gooddaysbaddays\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=544"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/gooddaysbaddays\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=544"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/gooddaysbaddays\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=544"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}