How To Pray For Someone With A Chronic Illness

I have been tremendously blessed with a community of people all over the world who have been praying for me.  I'm thankful for people who believe that God is powerful and can heal, people who hold me up in prayer when I'm feeling weak and am in urgent need.  If you are one of these people, thank you so much!

There was a time when sickness took over my life and everything stopped.  When I was in so much pain and could not move.  When the only productive thing I could do in a day was pray in bed.  Even holding a book to read was not an option.  That is not my life anymore.  Since I've started treatment, my mobility has returned.  And though I'm still getting adjusted to living day-to-day with a different set of challenges and needs, life has found routine again.

What many people don't realize is, though important, healing from lupus is not my greatest concern.  At the moment, it is not my most pressing need.  There are so many things (aside from lupus) that are heavy on my heart:

• This semester, I'm teaching a lot of classes and piano students at the Bible college where I did my undergrad.  I want to do well, to inspire, to impact the lives and future ministries of my students.
• Last year, my husband and I got out of debt!  We were so excited and we had plans for our financial freedom (like taking a trip to Japan next summer).  But piling medical bills, school bills (my husband is about to start his 2nd semester at seminary), and a little car crash have changed our financial situation.  We know that some of our plans may need to be put on hold, but we don't intend on letting them go.
• I want to perform seriously again.  After getting a master's degree in piano performance and having a summer filled with performing, lupus has been quite the interruption.  I'm ready to start learning new music and prepare for another recital.
• Japan.  Ever since we were in college, my husband and I have had a dream of moving to Japan to start a church.  Before lupus, we took two years of Japanese language classes and we're up to a first or second grade level in our reading and speaking abilities.  (Hey, first graders can do a whole lot!)  This dream is still alive.  We are still going.  So much needs to take place for this to happen.  We need a lot of miracles.
• I want my life to point people to God.  On good days and bad days.

These are the things I want people to pray about for me.  Of course, I don't want people to stop praying about my battle with lupus because it has an effect on all of these things.  And looming in the back of my mind is the knowledge that in an instant, a lupus flare or complication can dramatically interrupt my life again.  But with or without lupus, there are more important things in my life.

So, how do you pray for someone living with a chronic illness?  Pray for healing, strength, encouragement, and peace (for them and for the family members who take care of them).  But don't stop there because their life is not just sickness.  Their life is so much more.