Transforming Hearts
When I deal with pain, or cancer, or some new problem connected with my disability, of course, I ask people to pray for me. Because I want the pain to go away; I don’t want the cancer come back; I don’t want my disability get worse. But that physical stuff only covers about 20% of my prayer requests.
The other 80% covers things like “I need courage; ask God to grant me patience and endurance; ask the Lord to show more of himself to me; encourage my heart, keep my spirits bright, strengthen my hope… and ask God to glorify himself through all of it so that others can see his grace really does sustain in a powerful way!”
Friend, those are big answers to prayer. So… if you are battling a physical problem with your health, sure, ask God to do a physical miracle. But I would suggest devoting 80% of your prayer to your spiritual and emotional needs. Because God wants to transform your heart, and not just your hardships.
Perseverance in Suffering
Disability. Illness. Loneliness. Heartache. It’s a broken world and suffering comes at us in many shapes and sizes. Joni Eareckson Tada who has lived through more than 5 decades of quadriplegia, two rounds of breast cancer, and daily chronic pain, is well-acquainted with hardship. But she also knows about perseverance! Joni shares where she finds the strength to continue on and what she has learned about the power of example.
