The Cause Within You

A Book Review


For those of us who have always been taught that God has a plan and a purpose for each of us, often the next question is "But what is it?" If this is something you've been asking yourself or if you already know your purpose but just don't where to begin, this book is probably for you. Author Matthew Barnett shares his personal story about founding a non-profit outreach called the Dream Center to minister to some of the most desperately hopeless people in Los Angeles, CA. Through sharing his journey and those of the many volunteers who have shared in his cause, he gives practical methods for finding the cause you were created for, rolling up your sleeves, and allowing God to bless your efforts.

It's difficult not to be inspired by Barnett and his team when reading about the lives that are changed through this ministry and the believers who are actually out in the world putting "feet to their faith." I think we all have a hunger to do something that really matters instead of just living a mundane, superficial life day after day. The way Barnett was able to translate his experiences, whether failures or successes, into practical applications for others makes this much more than an autobiography. It's also a challenge for each of us to find our personal cause and begin living it now or to join someone else's until we do.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from Tyndale House Publishers as part of their book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

Overcome

So Jacob was left alone, and a man wrestled with him till daybreak. When the man saw that he could not overpower him, he touched the socket of Jacob’s hip so that his hip was wrenched as he wrestled with the man. Then the man said, “Let me go, for it is daybreak.” But Jacob replied, “I will not let you go unless you bless me.” The man asked him, “What is your name?” “Jacob,” he answered. Then the man said, "Your name will no longer be Jacob, but Israel, because you have struggled with God and with humans and have overcome.” - Genesis 32:24-28

He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To him who overcomes I will give some of the hidden manna to eat. And I will give him a white stone, and on the stone a new name written which no one knows except him who receives it. -Revelation 2:17

I found it interesting that both in the story of Jacob wrestling with the Lord and receiving his new name of Israel, as well as in the passage in Revelation, the word "overcome" is used in reference to receiving your Secret Name. Just a neat reminder in my devotions this morning that God gives us a new name when we overcome adversity in our lives. I recently read an amazing book about discovering your Secret Name and learned my new name: Treasured. You can read the story of my journey to find my Secret Name here.

Have you overcome adversity in your life? Do you know your new name?

Coming Back Stronger by Drew Brees: A Book Review

Who doesn't love a good comeback story? Add in football, and it's even better. Drew Brees, the quarterback of the Superbowl XLIV champion New Orleans Saints is no stranger to adversity. But all his life, when faced with adversity, he determined to make a strong comeback. Whether it was going through the divorce of his parents, fighting for a starting position on his high school football team, suffering an ACL injury that nearly ended his hopes for a college scholarship, or leading his Purdue team to the Rose Bowl, overcoming each of these hurdles now seems to be a foreshadowing of his NFL career. When a severe shoulder injury effectively ended his position as starting quarterback for the San Diego Chargers, and he found that most NFL teams considered his NFL career over as well, he refused to admit defeat. Instead, he found a home with a team and a city that needed a miraculous comeback as much as he did. And they both came back even stronger.

No matter what adversity you face in life, you cannot help but be inspired by the story of Drew Brees. His courage, faith, and determination to conquer life's challenges is both a testament to his character and an infusion of hope to anyone who's ever faced hardship and dared to mount a resurgence for victory.

Buy your copy of this amazing story here!

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from Tyndale House as part of their book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

Life Without Limbs by Nick Vujicic: A Book Review

A few months ago, I saw this video about a man named Nick Vujicic. It's impossible to see this man, hear him speak, or learn about his story without feeling inspired. Born without any limbs, he has faced adversity that most of us could never understand, yet he travels the world to communicate to others the love of God and the message that their life has a purpose and can be lived without the limits we place on ourselves due to negative circumstances. Nick shares the joy that he has found by determining to live a "ridiculously good life" and using his struggles to encourage others to overcome obstacles and embrace life.

This is much more than a self-help book. This is a story of inspiration and courage. By sharing his own journey to accept that God did not make a mistake allowing him to be born without limbs and that he has an important message to share with the world, Nick Vujicic is a true example of what it means to live life to the fullest. His practical wisdom, humor, and raw transparency will encourage you to change your attitude about life, rise above your challenges, and find a way to ignite passion in others.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from Waterbrook Multnomah as part of their book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

He Knows My Name

A Book "Experience" from Your Secret Name by Kary Oberbrunner

Every once in a while you read a book, and you just know that your life will never be the same. It feels like a personal message, meant just for you. And it becomes more than a book: it's an experience. I'd like to share my experience with you.

Each of us, whether consciously or unconsciously, is seeking our purpose in life - our identity. We want to know who we are and why our life matters in the grand scheme of things. As we go through life, we are given labels or Given Names that describe how others see us; and then we often spend the rest of our lives trying to live up to or to live down those names. But God has a Secret Name for each of us, a name that describes how He, our Creator, see us. Discovering our Secret Name is a journey that leads us to a deeper relationship with God and the beginning of truly understanding His plan for us.

As Author Kary Oberbrunner compared his journey to finding his Secret Name with the story of Jacob in the book of Genesis, I could not help but see similarities in my own life and realize I'd spent too long "playing the Name Game." I learned very early in my life that I could get recognition by being an achiever. The more awards I won, the more top grades I received in school, the more I improved my musical talents, the more people seemed to see me as a valuable person. This worked well for me until age 16 when I suddenly became "The Sick Girl," and I could no longer keep up with everyone's expectations of my being "Most Likely to Succeed." In my senior year of high school and through my freshman year of college I struggled just to get out of bed in the morning and stay awake through classes, but I did my best to put on a front that I had it all together as usual. But by the end of my freshman year I had begun to have major health problems and could no longer stay in school.

That's when I first noticed that I was becoming Invisible. I worked hard at improving my health and would have periods of remission where I would force myself to perform at work or at church so that I could have that feeling of being special and important. But inevitably my health would fail me again, and I would begin to feel Isolated and Abandoned by my friends and family. There were times I was out of commission for up to 6 months at a time, but I rarely had a phone call, email, or visit from any of those people I'd been trying so hard to impress. I felt Worthless and Forgotten, like I was a "Non-person." And as my health issues began to affect my weight, I no longer even recognized myself in the mirror. Pretty soon I was just a Fat, Sick, Depressed Person who meant very little to myself or anyone else. In the midst of a two-year downward spiral in my health and a series of events that left me feeling completely Invalidated by everyone in my life, I decided that my life was no longer worth living. And I attempted suicide.

Despite all the difficult circumstances over the past 17 years, I always felt God's presence and would see His hand at work in my life. I heard Him whisper loving assurances to me and would often picture Him holding me and singing over me, as in Zephaniah 3:17, "The LORD your God is with you, he is mighty to save. He will take great delight in you, he will quiet you with his love,he will rejoice over you with singing." When Kary asked us at the end of the book to picture ourselves alone before God and to imagine what name He would call us, I immediately heard God say, "I see you. I hear you. I remember you. You are precious to me." I immediately was drawn back to Zephaniah 3:17 and discovered the name Zephaniah means "treasured by God." That's when He confirmed to me that the words I heard Him say all described me as His Treasure. When God looks at me, he values me as a precious treasure, of so great worth that He would never abandon, forget, or overlook me. And I don't have to earn a list of achievements to be treasured in His eyes.

"When I don't measure up to much in this life, I'm a Treasure in the arms of Christ." -From "Forgiven" by Sanctus Real

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from Zondervan as part of their book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

Tabitha Who?

"Now you are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it." I Corinthians 12:27

"With all your talent and potential, you're gonna do great things for God one day!" I heard this repeatedly as I was growing up. My competitive/achiever nature often caused me to stand out among my peers, and there was always another award to add to my list of accomplishments. I had big goals and high hopes for my future. That all changed when I became The Sick Girl.

Now my biggest achievements are having the strength to fold last week's laundry, empty the dishwasher for the first time in 3 days, or mop the kitchen floor for only the second time in four months (no, I'm not kidding!). My current successes would be considered failures by most. I may not even see another human being, besides my husband, for a week at a time. How then can I ever expect to do these "great things for God?"

God spoke to me recently through Sheila Walsh's new book. She talks about the story of Tabitha in Acts 9:36-42. If you're wondering, "Tabitha who?" it's because those 7 verses are the only mention of her in the Bible. She never did anything amazing that would stick out in our minds, and we certainly don't think of her when we name the great characters of the Bible. Yet, when she died, the Christians in her home town were devastated. They went so far as to send two men to track down Peter and ask him to come back right away. When Peter returned and found all the widows standing around grieving, he raised her from the dead through the power of Christ!

Why her? She wasn't an apostle or a prominent leader in the church. All she did was sew clothes for the poor. Verse 36 describes her as "always doing good and helping the poor." That's nice, but it's not a great work of God. Or is it? Maybe the things we consider important and worthy of notice are not quite as important to God. That's an epiphany for me! My religious background was always about what I was doing to serve the Lord. It was about being at the church "every time the doors are open," going on weekly visitation, and singing solos before the entire congregation - all things I'm not physically able to do anymore. Does that mean I've missed my chance to fulfill God's purpose for my life? The Enemy would like for me to think so!

But the Bible tells me that God has a purpose for me and a place in the body of Christ where I can serve. These days that may not be a high-profile position in my church or community. Maybe it's being an encourager to others also dealing with chronic illness by praying for them, saying an uplifting word on Facebook, being honest about my struggles through this blog, or making a Prayer Shawl for them in my church's knitting ministry (kind of like Tabitha was doing in her church!).

But let's not miss the end of Tabitha's story. Verse 42 tells us that the story of her resurrection "became known all over Joppa, and many people believed in the Lord." Because she became sick and died, Jesus Christ received glory, and many precious souls were saved. What a testimony! Isn't that what all believers are called to do with our time on Earth?

Dear Lord, help me to remember that You have a purpose for my life every single day. Even though I may not feel like an important contributor to Your work, I will trust that you will use my humble offering - right here where I am - to glorify Your name and cause others to believe in You.

Easy Button - The Conclusion

So, whatever happened with my search for the Easy Button? I'm sure you're dying to know "the rest of the story." I am too! I don't think there IS an end. But there's definitely a lesson in there somewhere. I've been praying for over a year now that God would "show me great and mighty things I do not know" in regard to my health, our business, and my marriage. If you've read previous posts, you know I have these "333" sightings all the time and use them to remind me of Jeremiah 33:3. Each time I see the triple 3's, I pray that request to God. The past 18 months have been very difficult and very uncomfortable. In my experience, if you keep trusting God through times like these, it usually results in God doing a great work in your life. But I'll admit it: I can be impatient. And God and I have had some pretty heated conversations over the past several months. I even asked HIM about the Easy Button. And here's what He told me:

"Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light." Matthew 11:28-30

He kept giving me that passage, and I didn't get it at first. But then I changed my outlook and decided to trust that God had a purpose in all of this. I still don't know everything He has planned, but I started to see that he'd been answering my prayers all along. Without the recent seriousness of my health condition, I don't think I would have had the motivation to take charge of my health like I have. After just a few months, I have seen amazing improvements in my body. I believe there are better days ahead. When we moved from our beautiful home, I was hurt and angry. But the house we live in now is within 15 minutes of our clients and my doctors. And we live within a few miles of all the health food stores where I do a lot of my food shopping. We have a much smaller yard and home to take care of. This has taken a huge amount of stress off my husband, who had to drive at least an hour to get home from work every day, to take me to the doctor, and to make a special trip out here to get the food I need from the health food store. If I have an emergency at home, he can get to me in minutes, and he's been getting home earlier each evening.

There have been some other opportunities in the area of our business that have opened up because of our move, although we're still waiting to see how God works this out. And although I still don't have the answers about why we don't seem to have a support system in our lives to help out with the heavy burden my health puts on our lives, I am hopeful that the Lord will give us His divine revelation on practical ways we can lessen that burden on my husband's life. God has blessed me with the opportunity to work with a Christian life coach, and she gave me a great word picture to give me hope in this area. She explained that people often say, "that's the last straw," in referring to that circumstance that causes someone to say like Popeye, "That's all I can stands; I can't stands no more!" But what if we could remove things, one straw at a time - one burden at a time? We don't have to solve all our problems with some big epiphany all at once. Sometimes it's just one little solution at a time. And that sounds do-able to me.

So, although I didn't find a big red button to push, I'm starting to understand that quiet voice that keeps telling me, "Give it to Me; let Me carry that weight for you. Just rest in My loving arms and trust." His yoke is easy, and His burden is light.

30 Things About My Invisible Illness You May Not Know

30 Things About My Invisible Illness You May Not Know

1. The illness I live with is: Narcolepsy with Cataplexy
2. I was diagnosed with it in the year: 2007
3. But I had symptoms since: 1993
4. The biggest adjustment I’ve had to make is: to let things go. I can't do everything I want to do, and I can't do it perfectly. I have learned I have limitations.
5. Most people assume: I'm lazy or just enjoy sleeping a lot
6. The hardest part about mornings are: getting ready to leave the house is a HUGE undertaking. I have to take a break after every step. Take a shower; take a break. Get dressed; take a break.
7. My favorite medical TV show is: Mystery Diagnosis
8. A gadget I couldn’t live without is: motorized wheelchair
9. The hardest part about nights is: getting myself ready to go to sleep. I have to take a bunch of medicine, set two alarms so I can wake up in 4 hrs to take my second dose of meds, clean my CPAP mask and put water in the machine, plus all the normal stuff like brushing my teeth, etc. When I'm so tired I can hardly stand up, it's a nightmare.
10. Each day I take 21 pills & vitamins.
11. Regarding alternative treatments I: have found that they cannot be used to the exclusion of traditional treatments and vice versa.
12. If I had to choose between an invisible illness or visible I would choose: visible because then I wouldn't have to explain myself all the time.
13. Regarding working and career: I can NEVER work a normal 9-5 job because I don't have the stamina and can't be depended on to be somewhere at a certain time. I work from home and help with my husband's business as much as I can.
14. People would be surprised to know: how much I struggle with feeling inadequate and unproductive
15. The hardest thing to accept about my new reality has been: having to admit I can't do things and having to depend on others to help
16. Something I never thought I could do with my illness that I did was: graduate college. It took me until I was 29, and I dropped out, dropped classes, and asked for extensions more times that I can count. But I did it!
17. The commercials about my illness: what commercials? Most doctors don't even know what cataplexy is. I carry info sheets with me wherever I go in case I have an attack.
18. Something I really miss doing since I was diagnosed is: DRIVING!!!
19. It was really hard to have to give up: singing in the choir and singing specials at church
20. A new hobby I have taken up since my diagnosis is: bird watching
21. If I could have one day of feeling normal again I would: not know where to begin. It's been 16 years since I've felt "normal," so I don't know if I would recognize it if it actually happened.
22. My illness has taught me: to be compassionate and empathetic toward others
23. Want to know a secret? One thing people say that gets under my skin is: "It must be nice to stay home and relax all day!"
24. But I love it when people: offer to pick things up from the store for me or take me out for an afternoon
25. My favorite motto, scripture, quote that gets me through tough times is: Romans 5:3-5 "Not only so, but we also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us.
26. When someone is diagnosed I’d like to tell them: it's normal to grieve over the loss of your health and your dreams and goals for your life. Don't worry about putting on a brave front. God sees your pain; don't be afraid to let others see it so they can love you and hurt with you.
27. Something that has surprised me about living with an illness is: no one will ever understand completely what it is like for me to live with my illness, so I cannot expect that from people
28. The nicest thing someone did for me when I wasn’t feeling well was: came over and cleaned my house and didn't make me feel bad about how dirty some things were
29. I’m involved with Invisible Illness Week because: there are so many hurting people that are feeling alone in their illness, but spreading awareness can bring hope to those people like it brought hope to me.
30. The fact that you read this list makes me feel: that you love me enough to learn more about my struggles.

Find out more about National Invisible Chronic Illness Awareness Week and the 5-day free virtual conference with 20 speakers Sept 14-18, 2009 at www.invisibleillness.com

How to Surprise a Control Freak

I am not an easy person to surprise. I ask a lot of questions and like to have a lot of details. I like to know what's going on so that I can make a plan...and a back-up plan...and a back-up plan for my back-up plan. Basically, I'm a control-freak. It's something God and I have been working on for a long time, believe me. At least I freely admit it now, which is actually a big step for me. So when my dear husband decided to surprise me for Valentine's Day, he knew he was really in for a tough time.

We had already decided we didn't want to do the expensive dinner out thing. For one, I had not been feeling well for the past couple days. I had pulled my chest muscles working out, and it aggravated my hiatal hernia so that I couldn't stand to eat anything that wasn't soft...like mashed potatoes or oatmeal. We weren't gonna go to Morton's and order mashed potatoes for an entree. I honestly was in the mood to just stay in and watch a movie together on the couch. But he told me to be ready that evening to go out and eat at at a casual restaurant; you know...somewhere they don't frown on people eating mashed potatoes as a meal. I really dragged my feet on getting ready. I didn't feel like going out, and I kept asking my brother if he knew whether my husband was planning something specific or not because I really wanted to stay home, but I didn't want to ruin any plans he might have. He wasn't helping.

When it was time to leave and my sweetheart handed me a list of restaurants in a particular town to choose from, I got a little annoyed. If he was forcing me to go out, he could have at least planned something! I don't like to go to resstaurants that I've never heard of. I try to stick with chain restaurants or restaurants that have been personally recommended so that I know what to expect. Again with the control-freak thing. Of course, in this little town, there wasn't an Olive Garden or a Red Lobster to be found. So I ask why we must eat in this particular town. Couldn't we just eat somewhere like Ruby Tuesday's in the city and then go home? he tells me that he wants to at least head down in the direction of the little town, but we can stop and eat along the way. I ask what's so important in the town...he tells me to be patient and stop asking questions.

So we eat at a casual chain restaurant, and then we just start driving. I ask where we're headed. He tells me to please just enjoy the drive and not ask questions. But I want to know if we're headed somewhere specific or are just driving aimlessly. He starts to get a little annoyed with me. Then we stop at a couple of our commercial clients' properties, and he shows me the new mulch we just put down that week. I'm like "Ok. That's nice, but are we going somewhere?" We drive some more. Then we head into a subdivision that we take care of for another client. He asks me if I've ever seen that property before, and I very impatiently tell him I really don't care, and are we just going to take a tour of all our customers' properties or are we actually doing something? Finally, he drives up to a hotel and spa inside the subdivision. I never even knew it was there! He announces that we're spending the night there and that he had already packed my stuff and brought it with us. My first thought? Oh, no! He probably forgot my contact solution, my glasses, my medicine. I bet he didn't pack me the right clothes! So I start going down this list with him, quizzing him on what he brought. He tells me to just be patient and go inside.

When I got inside, I was truly amazed. He had been to the resort before me and had already checked into the room to prepare it for me. He had 6 dozen multi-colored roses either spread out all over the bed or in vases on the tables. There were candles everywhere. And dark chocolate. And my clothes were in the closet! All my hair products and toothbrush and hairdryer were all put away in the bathroom vanity! It was much more than I would have ever expected. And it just felt good that he knew what would please me and make me feel comfortable and relaxed...and loved. Then I felt like a jerk. I had interrogated him about all the details of what we were doing. I had gotten annoyed when I thought he didn't have a plan. I had not trusted him to know me well enough to know what I would like or what I would need. Yet he had something prepared for me that I would never have guessed or expected. But it was just what I wanted and just what I needed.

I was reminded of my heavenly Father. He loves me with a love to which my husband could never compare. He tells me in His precious love letter, the Bible, that He has a plan for me. He says that He has prepared great things for me that are above anything that I could ever ask or think. But I want to know now. Where are You taking me, Lord? Will I like it when we get there? Maybe You should tell me the details now so I can prepare. Or maybe I would rather do something else besides what You have planned. Will we be there soon, or are we just wandering around wasting time? I really need to know. Maybe You forgot, Lord, but I have some special needs; I can't do things that other people - healthy people - can do. You may not have thought it through, but there are things You really should take into consideration. God, why are stopping here? I don't see what this has to do with anything. But all time, He knows what the end will be. He knows that when I finally see His plan that it will all fall into place and I will see that He truly knows me and loves me better than I even know myself. If only I had trusted. If only I had waited patiently for the surprise. But I'm a control freak. It's something God and I have been working on for a long time.

“Eye has not seen, nor ear heard, nor have entered into the heart of man the things which God has prepared for those who love Him.” I Corinthians 2:9