{"id":834,"date":"2013-09-16T18:35:23","date_gmt":"2013-09-16T18:35:23","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blog.beliefnet.com\/gooddaysbaddays\/?p=834"},"modified":"2013-09-14T18:48:28","modified_gmt":"2013-09-14T18:48:28","slug":"the-essence-of-coping-with-chronic-illness-is-a-strong-and-willing-spirit","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/gooddaysbaddays\/2013\/09\/the-essence-of-coping-with-chronic-illness-is-a-strong-and-willing-spirit.html","title":{"rendered":"The Essence of Coping with Chronic Illness Is a Strong and Willing Spirit"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Image<\/a>
Image courtesy of nuchylee\/FreeDigitalPhotos.net<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Do not stifle the Spirit.<\/p>\n

1 Thessalonians 5:19<\/p>\n

\n

I cannot count the times that this simple sentence has resonated in my head and heart. \u00a0As we all know, life with chronic pain and illness can be wearing, tearing down our resolve just as it depletes our energy. But the five words above always bring me back to what is really important, at least in my little corner of the world.<\/p>\n

Although we are physically weaker than we would like to be, and we are sometimes not as emotionally resilient as we need to be, the more we open ourselves up to the Holy Spirit, the more we can rise above the struggle and keep shining with God’s love and grace.<\/p>\n

Praying, “Lord, fill me with your Spirit and let it move me through the day,” is a powerful way to invite this essential component of coping into our routine.<\/p>\n

Keeping these five simple words at-the-ready helps reinforce their strength in the midst of our weakness.<\/p>\n

Understanding that the Holy Spirit is with us, even when we might not be able to consciously sense it, helps us move from stifling it to allowing it to work.<\/p>\n

And, when the Spirit works, oh, my! What a difference it makes in all ways, large and small!<\/p>\n

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

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

Do not stifle the Spirit. 1 Thessalonians 5:19 I cannot count the times that this simple sentence has resonated in my head and heart. \u00a0As we all know, life with chronic pain and illness can be wearing, tearing down our resolve just as it depletes our energy. But the five words above always bring me…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":548,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3,43,4,383,379],"tags":[44,155,124,46,56,457,121,715],"class_list":["post-834","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-chronic-pain-and-illness","category-encouragement-in-life","category-words-of-encouragemnent-and-info-for-all","category-heart-health","category-lupus-2","tag-chronic-pain","tag-grace","tag-holy-spirit","tag-hope","tag-love","tag-strength","tag-thessalonians","tag-weakness"],"yoast_head":"\nThe Essence of Coping with Chronic Illness Is a Strong and Willing Spirit - Good Days...Bad Days With Maureen Pratt<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/gooddaysbaddays\/2013\/09\/the-essence-of-coping-with-chronic-illness-is-a-strong-and-willing-spirit.html\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"The Essence of Coping with Chronic Illness Is a Strong and Willing Spirit - Good Days...Bad Days With Maureen Pratt\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Do not stifle the Spirit. 1 Thessalonians 5:19 I cannot count the times that this simple sentence has resonated in my head and heart. \u00a0As we all know, life with chronic pain and illness can be wearing, tearing down our resolve just as it depletes our energy. 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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). 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