When Illness Becomes A Bully

“For I am the Lord your God who takes hold of your right hand and says to you, ‘Do not fear; I will help you.'” Isaiah 41:13 

  

  When I was in school a fellow much bigger than me decided to use me for target practice, bullying me and pushing me around. Finally, I had enough and told him: “You may be able to beat me up, but you are going to have to fight me.” It seems he enjoyed bullying, but had no desire to actually fight. 

  That was the end of me being bullied and I never let it happen again. I have zero tolerance for bullies. 

  Sometimes it has felt like my illness is a bully, with it endlessly, mercilessly, causing me pain and misery and suffering. I would like to punch it in the mouth and put an end to the “bullying,” but this obnoxious pain does not easily go away. Yet, a fighting spirit is useful when it comes to the bully of our illness. 

  Several times I was tempted to just lie down and quit with my afflictions. I seriously considered forgoing my Crohn’s related surgery and just finishing out the days I had left. It is tempting sometimes to give up and quit fighting, especially when we are so weak and weary. 

  However, there is something in us that does not like to quit, and no matter how weak we are, we can call upon the Lord for: courage, strength, wisdom, and the ability to keep going when our strength is gone. 

  It is not easy to keep fighting when we cannot lift our arms to fight, and it is hard to get back up when our illness continually knocks us to the ground. But a fighting spirit along with stubborn determination can help in such circumstances, and we should never rule out what the Lord can do through us. 

  We need courage, we need determination, and above all we need the Lord’s help to confront the bully of illness. 

  You may be taking a beating right now from your particular “bully” of illness. Maybe it has knocked you down, been mercilessly unkind, and made you fearful and wishing to run away. Your bully needs to meet someone named Jesus. He is the biggest, strongest, toughest guy on the block, and with Him around, your illness bully has no chance in the eternal struggle of your life. 

  Prayer: Dear Lord, we face many bullies in life, especially the bully of illness, disease, and affliction. Give us courage and strength. Stand beside us as we face down our bullies of affliction. Amen.