I hope you enjoyed your New Year celebration and are off to a good start with your resolutions. Over the last week, I’ve had a lot of time to reflect and focus on how I’m going to make my resolutions stick and achieve the goals I’ve set for myself.
Healthwise, 2025 was a bit challenging for me with the hernia repair and skin cancer surgery, and those challenges have continued into 2026. Those who have been reading my blogs know one of the things I most fear is catching a cold/flu/COVID/etc. Those usually temporary but unavoidable conditions seem to be a bit more challenging for me because the symptoms always end up going into my chest and make breathing much more difficult. Shortly after Christmas, I came down with one of these colds. To those without Myasthenia Gravis, a cold is just a cold, but to those of us with MG, colds can be extremely challenging. Once a cold gets into my chest, I have trouble keeping my airways open through coughing. The more I cough, the weaker my cough becomes due to MG and that can eventually lead to pneumonia or a myasthenia crisis. It can become quite concerning and people around me get tired of listening to my constant (but mostly unproductive) coughing. That’s the dilemma I’ve found myself in to start 2026. Feeling poorly, no energy, and the unacceptable feeling of a rabbit hole that is just waiting for me to jump in.
One of the ways I combat this victim-like attitude is by reading and finding things that inspire me. I often turn to the Bible or one of the many excellent books that help strengthen my faith. One of my favorite Bible verses is Colossians 3:23. The EasyEnglish Bible tells it like this:
“Whatever things you are doing, do them well. Remember that you are serving the Lord. You are not only serving people.”
This verse fully aligns with two of my New Year resolutions: to continue to strengthen my faith in God and become fully engaged in whatever it is I do.
During this new cold, I looked inward. I know my source of strength comes from God, but I also realize when I need encouragement, God usually always tells me to follow my heart. I stray away from that process at times and get too easily led by life and all that is going on around me. Perhaps it was God’s method that made me slow down so that I’d take the time to re-examine my strengths, my goals, and my purpose. As I reflected, I realized my MG blog messages are providing strength and encouragement for some, but it’s not really my words; it’s God’s love and mercy that is the source. I am just the messenger. Even a messenger, however, needs to do their job well and that’s where my focus needs to be.
For quite a long time, my blogs avoided talking about God. It was as if I was concerned about offending someone if I brought God into the picture. I’ve always had strong faith, but during the journey with MG, I’ve realized how placing my faith in God is the only way. I can’t control what’s going on, but I can control how I react to it, and I always react better when I remember that God has my hand and is by my side.
You see, I’ve never been ashamed of God; I’ve just become conditioned not to specifically mention Him. In a society that has somehow learned to become all inclusive, which often means avoiding discussion about faith and God, I became one of its victims. I was afraid to speak up, but no more. My faith in God is a source of pride and I’ll no longer be afraid to share my faith with you.
I realize how foolish I was. While it was never my intent to offend anyone, the person I should be most concerned about offending is God. I can imagine Him in heaven watching as I wrote my blogs and chuckling to Himself, knowing once again I missed the mark. I can also imagine Him encouraging me to take another shot and keep shooting until I get it right. Right in this case means letting everyone with MG know that we need God in our lives. We can’t do this alone. We need His strength, His mercy, and His guidance. We need to take whatever it is we are doing and do it well, remembering that whatever it is we are doing, we are doing it for God, not just for man.
Having to slow down during this current cold and reflect on the path I choose to take, I’ve realized that my blogs will always be most helpful if I remind people to trust in our Lord. That’s how I serve God first and how my words can be used by others to strengthen their faith, provide hope, encourage perseverance, and give whatever it is we are doing some meaning. It means becoming Fully Engaged.
This is what God wanted me to see. This is what God wanted me to do. And, whatever I do, I will do well for Him and for you.
In 2026, I want to continue to provide you with encouragement, but this time I won’t hesitate to share with you where my encouragement comes from. I will get through Myasthenia Gravis and all its associated oddities, and I will do it well, but I will do it realizing that God is truly my source of strength and that the biggest gift I can give to you is to share my faith with you.