Finding God During Sickness

I have had a consistent cold for about 3 weeks during this winter month. Nothing like a cold during vacation huh! Haha! 🙂

I write this during my cold, and I’m sure many of you can relate. You may know mentally that getting a cold physically might spiritually mean Jesus wants you to rest, and boy oh boy did Jesus want me to rest this month! I have been super busy working about 3 jobs as I prepare for my next adventure overseas. I was busy speeding up and Jesus was saying to slow down. He’s so funny that way!! 🙂 I believe healing includes active rest. You may have heard or know active rest from workouts – like lightly jogging in place between sets to get your heartrate to slow down, or walking in between running stints. And similarly, active spiritual rest and finding true rest in Jesus I’ve found works in a similar way.

As I recover from my physical cold, I realize God has done some wonderful deep emotional and spiritual work as well internally. I hope you can find inspiration and connection from these truths as well. 🙂

Truth #1 – Sickness is NOT from God, but He can and usually does use it for our ultimate good.

God is good, and by that same logic, everything good comes from God. Therefore sickness does not come from God, but He makes sure it all turns out with goodness in the end – like sparking new joy, gratitude, and happiness for my life and dreams.

Truth #2 – Rest is Good.

Getting sick sucks. And that suffering is not fun at all. But we must go through suffering because of the broken world we live in. God is a good God and created rest which is good. Rest does not have to have a negative or “lazy” connotation with it as most of society can make us think sometimes, if done with the right intentions. Rest was created rest for us on the seventh day. The Sabbath has many sermons and many people talk about it but few truly embrace it or clearly talk about what it truly means to rest in the Lord, and live a life out of rest in Christ. I hope to be different, and am trying everyday to authentically live from a place of rest.

Truth #3 – God Meets Us Where We Are.

My identity used to lie in performance. For the most part (see, I said most part there–;) my identity is found in Christ. But I’m not perfect. A relationship with Christ is not like that with other imperfect human beings. We don’t have to meet Jesus “half-way” Because He walks straight to us the whole way and meets us right where we are. He does not condemn us for not meeting everyone of our own made milestones. As a woman who loves lists and goals and milestones and checking off the “boxes” I’ve learned and embraced more and more that God is with me every single step of the way. I don’t have to do things in order to get right with God or to live up to any perfect standard.

Truth #4 – Needing Rest or Getting Sick Does Not Mean We Are Weak or Lazy.

It usually means God wants to get closer to you and this was a perfect opportunity for Him to get your attention. Rest is not the same thing as laziness. It’s difficult to decipher the difference sometimes as humans, but with practice it can become clearer – it has for me:) God commands us to rest. But he rebukes laziness.

Truth #5 – Physical Sickness Can Sometimes Be a Sign of Deep Emotional Work and Healing God Wants to Do In You.

Healing is a journey with many layers that take time, work, and rest to heal. As someone who is always on the go and likes to constantly keep herself busy, I rarely take true rest breaks for myself. I’m getting better at this though. I’ve found that when I take the time to truly rest – rest my mind, body, spirit and heart and just be with God and with myself that’s where I find the most inspiration and insight. From this place is sometimes where I get most of my goo, creative ideas like starting my own Etsy business (See here if you’re curious!) this blog that serves God and you, as well as craving change, growth and adventure which lead me to getting my TEFL certificate (add link to ITA and add referral link w/code) and going overseas to South Korea to Teach English. My heart will show me what it needs once I slow down and pay attention to it.

Truth #6 – Vulnerability is Strength.

Here on my blog is where I like to get super real, raw and vulnerable in the hopes that strangers like you on the internet don’t feel like strangers, so you can connect to this and grow yourself in your relationships with God, yourself, and others. I found authenticity is what connects us. Yes, it is scary, but it’s also powerful, because know God will protect me and be my strength in that weakness. Especially feeling weak during my cold, I find newfound strengths through the suffering.

Truth #7 – Rest During Sickness Can Help Us Find Our True Self.

I always like to introspect. I’m someone who enjoys thinking about her thoughts and thinking about how we function and think and the deeper meanings and causes. Every time I find deep rest in Christ usually catalyzed through a cold or sickness) I find out more about my wonderful beautiful awesome self that Jesus made me to be. I want to be someone who shows her true authentic self in Christ to the rest of the world as a light shining bright. I know I am not perfect and will not do it perfectly. I am working on not trying to perform and not trying to do it out of a place of obligation but out of a place of rest in Christ deep in my heart. We are in the process of becoming who we were meant and designed to become.

I found God unveiling more of His heart through the revealing of each of these truths. I also feel the need to say that when truths are usually revealed in our lives, though wonderful, are not usually some big grand event like many of us expect it to be. It usually happens in the quiet of the night unexpectedly. I find this simplicity to be the most beautiful aspect of my relationship with Christ of all. Simple, quiet, unexpected, but beautiful.