'Do not be anxious about anything'

Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

-Philippians 4:6-7

Lately, it's been hard not to be anxious.

Back in January, I learned that I had a detached retina in my left eye. By Jan. 15, I had the first of two procedures to correct the problem.

That seemed to fix it, but it erupted in a different spot in the same eye, so in late January I had surgery. Now, my left eye's vision is blurry, as expected after surgery. It's slowly improving. Slowly. And it's likely I'll need to have one or two more procedures for the same eye.

It's easy to fall into anxiety and worry about that vision as it slowly returns. But I'm trying - sometimes successfully - to place those worries in God's hands through prayer.

Paul offered these words to the Philippians to ease anxiety. How do you handle your own worries?

'We are renewed day by day'

Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day.

-2 Corinthians 4:16

Every so often, my body reminds me that I'm no longer in my 20s. Or 30s. Or 40s. You get the picture.

Now we're in the middle of Holy Week, the week between Psalm Sunday - the celebration of Jesus' entry to Jerusalem - and Easter Sunday - the celebration of his resurrection and the ultimate promise of what Paul is saying in the verse above.

So consider this verse this week. Despite age, health issues, anything that troubles you, there's that promise of renewal.

It's not about food or drink but about you and me

For the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking, but of righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit, ...

-Romans 14:17

Last post was about alcohol and its possible effect on stroke risk.

Now, a different alcohol angle.

Where did you grow up? My hometown was in a "dry" county, a place with alcohol restrictions and lots of people who just didn't approve of alcohol.

God and time - he's got all that's needed for all of us

God has, quite literally, all the time in the world for each one of us.

-Philip Yancey

I'm a fan of time.

One of my favorite TV offerings is the program "Doctor Who" about an eccentric time traveler, with clever plots often revolving around time. And in real life, it's interesting to me how the timing of events have been so key in history and in my own life.

• A gifted, somewhat maverick, neurosurgeon winds up in a middle-size Southern city for a short time. In that small space of time, a family with a young child suddenly needs that surgeon to save the child's life.
• A woman facing Alzheimer's disease faces a move to be closer to one of her children. A facility just opens a new wing, offering as much independence as wanted but care if needed. As the disease progresses, the same facility builds an unparalleled skilled nursing facility next door. The woman is cared for in comfort close to a loving family in her last few months.

'We get knocked down, but we get up again'

We are pressed on every side by troubles, but not crushed and broken. We are perplexed because we don’t know why things happen as they do, but we don’t give up and quit. We are hunted down, but God never abandons us. We get knocked down, but we get up again and keep going.

-2 Corinthians 4:8-9

What do the words "crushed" or "broken" mean to you?

Physically, grapes are crushed to make wine; a window can be broken by a baseball. But what about people?

Paul wrote to the Corinthians about the human condition - you can't ignore that troubles abound. Good, decent people can have health problems. Hard workers can find themselves unemployed. Those seeking friends might find themselves - in human terms - alone.

But we are not really alone. God never abandons us.

Does that mean all the world is just rainbows and flowers? Of course not. Humans - with both good intentions and bad intentions - have made many, many messes in this world. We get through this precisely because God never abandons us.

'... Patient in affliction ...'

Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer.

-Romans 12:12

I'm intentionally repeating these words from Paul today. In April 2014, I posted about my then-recent knee surgery and my need for patience.

Today marks one year plus a day after the arthroscopic knee surgery. I'm still not quite there, but getting closer.

And I'm still thinking about patience today. And, I hope, tomorrow. And so on.

A few months ago, I made an intentional decision to change the way I prayed about my knee. With more confidence. With more patience. It has made those months much easier for me to accept that sometimes, recovery is slow. Today, I feel that I'm a more patient patient.

And more confident, too, that God will take care of me. Do I get everything I want in the deal? Not necessarily. But God will put me in a place where he can use me, all of me, knee and all.

'Who gives me strength'

I am not saying this because I am in need, for I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances. I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. I can do all this through him who gives me strength.

-Philippians 4:11-13

Ever felt weak? I certainly have.

Does anyone like that? Certainly not.

Paul had his own hardships - beaten up, locked up, etc. In his letter to the Philippians, he tells of his remarkable ability to handle all those situations.

Now, note that Paul didn't just stop when he found a way to be content with his circumstances. No, he kept going in his mission that still resonates today. But he did find that God's strength is the world's greatest coping tool for those in stress.

Stressed out? Weak? Use the same coping tool that brought Paul through his worst days.

An update one week out

Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer.

-Romans 12:12

A few weeks ago, I posted a note about arthroscopic knee surgery scheduled for April 1.

This is my week anniversary of surgery, and while I can tell my knee problem was fixed, it's still sore and swollen. In other words, fairly normal recovery.

Now, it's a matter of patience. I am not patient person in many ways. I want instant relief, instant fix, instant recovery.

Of course, the world seldom operates that way. Instead, we wait for relief, we sit and try to fill our time for fixes, we spent hours, days, weeks, months and more for recovery. But Paul gave some great advice to his fellow believers in Rome.

We don't always have control - indeed, we seldom have control - over time and recovery. Certainly, there are often - not always, but often - ways to smooth our path for recovery. There are many, many well-trained health professionals who can help. And in many instances, using patience will bring about more lasting recuperation.

So in my recovery, I do pray that I can be joyful in hope, patient in my affliction, and faithful to pray.

'Do not be anxious about anything'

Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

-Philippians 4:6-7

Photo from the National Institutes of Health

Anxiety never helps.

Paul gave valid guidance to the Philippians. Instead of worrying, bring your issues to God. Now, did Paul say that's the only thing to do? No. It is, though, the first thing to do.

And recently, I saw stories that anxiety is linked to higher long-term risk of stroke:

The greater your anxiety level, the higher your risk of having a stroke, according to new research published in the American Heart Association journal Stroke.

The study is the first in which researchers linked anxiety and stroke independent of other factors such as depression. Anxiety disorders are one of the most prevalent mental health problems. Symptoms include feeling unusually worried, stressed, nervous or tense.

You might say that Paul was way ahead of his time in giving stroke prevention advice. Follow it!

'Straining toward what is ahead'

Brothers and sisters, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.

-Philippians 3:13-14

"Forgetting what is behind..."

I must admit, sometimes I look backward. Decisions made. Events that I had no control over. Tragedies and disappointments. Thrills and accomplishments.

And yet, those backward glances change nothing that is ahead. Yes, remembering lessons are important. But learning lessons and reliving the past are not the same thing.

Paul, in his letter to the Philippians, got it right: Strain toward what is ahead, and "press on toward the goal... ."

'The love of God'

For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

-Romans 8:38-39

Last Thursday's posting was about life's trials - big and small - that can produce perseverance in faith.

Today, I re-read these verses from Paul's letter to the Romans and saw they fit that message, too. Trials are in the present and test us for the future. But despite these trials, they cannot separate us from God's love.

The trial I wrote about last week - harassment and tomato-throwing - is small compared to the trial of stroke recovery. But God's love is large - bigger than any trial, love that cannot be separated from you.

You might have seen these words on this blog before, but they're so worth repeating.

'Who comforts us in all our troubles'

Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God.

-2 Corinthians 1:3-4

Paul gave some wise words. God comforted my troubles after my stroke - not necessarily at the pace I'd prefer, not all at once in a flash, but comfort came to me. 

One goal for this blog is to share and spread comfort - given by God - to others who need it.

Troubles can be so real - slow recovery, daunting physical problems, language challenges, and more. Be ready to accept God's comfort, and be ready to pass along, as able, comfort to someone else who needs God's care.

'For we are God's handiwork'

For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.

-Ephesians 2:10

After my stroke, I considered the idea that I was "damaged goods" somehow. I struggled with recovering my speaking and writing abilities, despite the damage.

Yet, we hear Paul's words to the Ephesians that echo to this day. No matter my "damage," I am - just as you are - God's handiwork.

Perfect? No one is. Accepted by Christ? All of us.

'Honor God with your bodies'

Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your bodies.

-1 Corinthians 6:19-20

A recent story about salt research can be an example of honoring your body - through controlling salt intake.

Reuters Health reported that a study says U.S.- wide salt reduction could prevent deaths. A snippet:

The Institute of Medicine recommends most healthy people get 1,500 milligrams (mg) of sodium per day, with an upper limit of 2,300 mg. But the average American eats more like 3,600 mg each day, largely through processed food.

"Reducing sodium intake is important for everyone, not just a small subset of people who are salt sensitive," said Pamela Coxson, the study's lead author from the University of California, San Francisco.

Although the health effects of a salt cutback may be small for the average person, she said, the results show they add up when projected across millions of Americans.

A low-sodium diet can help with high blood pressure, the most common cause of strokes.

Separate us? Never

For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

-Romans 8:38-39

After a stroke, it's easy to feel separated. In my own experience, with a difficulty to read and speak, I spent time seemingly apart - even in a crowded place.

Paul's words serve as a reminder that despite what life throws at any of us, we can't be separated from God. His love is always with you.

Does that mean that post-stroke life is rosy and always ideal, always easy? Certainly not. Life will not stop giving out  challenges on a daily basis, large and small. But through at all, no matter the outcome on this life and on this earth, that love abides. Always.

God's love: Open for all

For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

-Romans 8:38-39

Responding to a Stroke of Faith posting on Christmas Eve, an intelligent blogger commented that a particular medication does not work with complete effectiveness for every person.

My response included the phrase that "the results are very much case by case." That's true for any medication you can buy, use or receive. People are unique, so results are case by case.

Later, during Christmas Eve church services, I thought about that phrase in a different context: Unlike medications, God's love is NOT a case-by-case basis. As Paul wrote, God's love is for all and cannot be undone. Cannot be removed from us.

In this world, so much of life is case-by-case. God's love is not one of these. His love is offered to us all.

'God's love has been poured out into our hearts'

Not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us.

-Romans 5:3-5

I monitor a few other blogs and saw a video, showing how one stroke survivor has seen all the characteristics that Paul described: suffering, perseverance, character, hope.

Watch and learn...

'Endurance and encouragement'

May the God who gives endurance and encouragement give you the same attitude of mind toward each other that Christ Jesus had, so that with one mind and one voice you may glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.

-Romans 15:5-6

For the last seven months, I've had some serious back problems - pain, sometimes searing pain, has certainly challenged my endurance as a runner and encouragement in general.

I also must admit that much of the time, I do not like to ask for help. And this self-reliance attitude can serve well, in some ways. But when it comes down to it, we all need help for endurance and encouragement.

Paul's word is a great reminder that we're here to provide said help to each other.

'Overflow with hope'

May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.

-Romans 15:13

"The God of hope ..." That's a phrase full of promise. No matter what you are going through, God is the God of hope.

When you find yourself struggling for hope - look for his promises to "fill you with all joy and peace." Trust him in his word.

Does hope always mean we get exactly what we wish for in this world alone? No. God gives hope not to the fleeting wishes for a material world, but far beyond this world. He gives us "overflow with hope."

'The Father of compassion'

Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God. 

-2 Corinthians 1:3-4

Pretty much everyone likes a comfortable chair. A comfortable bed. Comfortable shoes.

Yet, there is so discomfort in this world. You know your own troubles. We know the troubles of those we love. And often, we try to offer comfort for those we love. God knows the troubles of those he loves - all of us - and he, too, offers comfort. And through God, you can help comfort others.

Paul reminded his fellow believers in Corinth. Remind yourself today - God is here to provide compassion and comfort. To you and through you.