By Josie Siler

I couldn’t wait to get my feet in the water and scrunch my toes in the sand. As a Wisconsin girl, I don’t get a lot of beach time. It was May, and according to the locals, the ocean was too cold to swim in.

I pointed out a couple playing in the water about a hundred yards down the beach. My friend was sure they weren’t locals and that they were as crazy as me! After walking over a mile down the beach and back, I stopped harassing her and told her she could stay on the edge of the water while I went in.

I splashed in the waves and my giggles increased with the depth of water. As I went deeper, the strength of the waves increased. I turned my body and leaned into the waves to keep from falling over. Besides the waves coming at me, now from my right, I could feel a current flowing straight at me. This was a surprise!

Growing up around lakes with little to no current and rivers where currents flow the same direction as the water, this was something new. Waves were coming at me from one side, while the hidden current pushed at me from another. I was in about waist deep and decided that was far enough.

I’m a little stubborn, and even though the current was messing with my head, I still wanted to go under. I knew I couldn’t go out any deeper; the current was strong enough to take me somewhere I didn’t want to go. The easy solution, or so I thought, was to crouch down a little closer to shore and quickly dip my head under.

The waves seemed to be coming in groups, with a little pause between them. With knees bent and a big smile on my face, I timed my crouch for one of the breaks. When it came I crouched down quickly, only to be knocked to my bum by the current.

While I was down there I took a big breath, held my nose closed with my fingers, and dipped my head under water, only too late remembering that I was wearing sunglasses. I caught them as I sat up, feet tucked awkwardly underneath me. I tried to stand, but a wave knocked me over.

So continued the pattern of waves knocking me to my left and the current knocking me back onto my bum…over and over again. I was in shallow enough water that I was safe, but I couldn’t get back up!

I was the only one in the water and I could imagine how ridiculous I looked. I couldn’t stop laughing at myself; the pasty white girl from Wisconsin, totally out of her element, falling over in the ocean, and laughing her head off while a mass of locals looked on. Finally the waves let up enough for me to get to my feet and I headed to the sandy beach and my friend’s laughter.

As I remember my ocean debacle, I see some spiritual truths buried in the water. In life, we’re going to get knocked down – by things we can see, and things we can’t see. There are going to be trials that come at us that we see coming, like the waves. We may not be able to keep them from hitting us, but we can get ready and brace ourselves against their onslaught.

The currents, however, are another story. Those are life’s surprise attacks; things like a sudden illness, the death of a loved one, or the unexpected loss of a job. It’s harder to prepare for these things because we never know when they will hit us.

What do we do? Do we check out of life? Stay out of the ocean and keep to the safety of the sandy beach? Sometimes. After I returned from my trip I began to hear about shark attacks. The number of attacks this summer has been staggering and I would not go in the ocean right now, no matter how warm the water is!

It’s okay to step back from life once in a while, taking time to heal or rest. However, we can’t stay there. Life is made for living and God has placed you on this planet for a reason. He has a plan for you. If life has knocked you down, He can help you get back up!

We do this by spending time with God and reading His Word. A firm foundation in Christ will allow us to not be destroyed when the attacks come.

Sometimes it is really hard to get back up. You might look ridiculous. You might fall on your bum; if you do, there’s only one thing to do: try again. The great news is we aren’t alone. We’re told in Psalm 145:14 (ESV) that, “The Lord upholds all who are falling and raises up all who are bowed down.” Friends, this is great news!

God sees when life knocks you down and He’s right there to help you get back on your feet. As Toby Mac sings, “it’s never too late to get back up again!”

By Erin Elizabeth Austin

Life can be brutal. This is a knowledge I’ve learned all too well. For me, I don’t think I can ever say there’s been a time in my life when things were easy. Molested at the age of eight, struggling with random weird ailments which my doctors failed to understand, diagnosed with lupus when I was seventeen, fibromyalgia when I was twenty-one, Crohns when I was twenty-five, life has more often than not been cruel. Almost dying on five separate occasions, not to mention undergoing countless hospital stays, tests, procedures, and surgeries, I learned just how challenging life can be. In college I struggled with depression and even went through a time where I contemplated the merits of suicide. Truly, life is hard. But if there’s one thing all this has taught me, it’s that I’m more than my suffering and the cruel circumstances life has continually thrown my way. I am a survivor.

Maybe it simply shows just how stubborn I can be, but I refuse to quit. Even when I considered committing suicide, I could never go through with it because in the end, that would have been giving up. I refuse to let evil win! I am a survivor.

I daresay anyone reading this is a survivor. I know many of your stories. Life has beaten you up, torn you down, and thrown you for a loop, and yet you’re still here. Yes, you struggle with doubts, discouragement, and even depression, but you’re still here. You are a survivor.

I wish I could easily explain why life is so hard and some people seemingly have all the bad luck, but there’s no simple explanation. Sure I can give you the theological answer, but truthfully, that doesn’t make dealing with problems any easier. Sometimes, life is just hard, and it’s not fair. But that doesn’t make you any less of a survivor, and that’s a big deal.

So many people give up on life. Even if they don’t commit suicide, they stay at home or hide in the mundane and they become a shell of who they could be, and that is definitely not surviving. It’s barely living. 

God isn’t appalled by the challenges you face. He doesn’t shake His head in exasperation when you experience discouraging thoughts. He knows you by name. He sees every tear that falls, and He hears you when you cry out to Him. You are loved and cherished by the King of kings and Lord of lords. There is nothing you can say or do that will diminish His love.

It’s because of this we can be more than our circumstances. Life may sometimes knock us down, but it doesn’t get to win. Because of what Jesus accomplished on the cross, we have the victory! Yes, sickness is hard. It steals our time, our energy, our money, our freedom, and sometimes even our relationships, but it doesn’t determine who we are as a person. Sickness doesn’t get to win!

God has never given up on you and He never will. Through His grace, we can overcome every obstacle life puts in our path. He gives us the strength to carry on when we’re weary and the courage we need to never give up. He is our sustaining power.

Maybe you don’t feel like a survivor at the moment. I think we’ve all had times when we’ve given up in one way or another, but it was simply that – a moment. You get to decide what you do with your life, and you make this choice every single day. If you are alive, then your life has a purpose. Don’t waste it!

Choose to fight. Walk in victory! Be the survivor!

“Yet in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us.” ~ Romans 8:37

© July 9, 2015

By Josie Siler

“You can do it!” I scream as I bounce up and down in my chair. “Go, Go, Go! Just a little more! Yay! You did it!” As I start cheering out loud I realize I had been holding my breath. I don’t quite know what to do with my hands. They’re shaking a little, so I squeeze them into fists and jam them into the air in victory, trying not to cry.

Who knew a TV show could get me so worked up? Before you laugh at me, let me tell you something. This isn’t just any TV show, this is American Ninja Warrior!

It’s a show that’s encouraging and inspiring people all over the world. Contestants compete one at a time on the mother of all obstacle courses. Each course has several obstacles contestants need to get through. They start out at one of the city qualifiers. If they complete every obstacle and hit the buzzer at the end, they automatically advance to the city finals. However, even if you don’t finish the course, you have a chance of making the city finals. The top thirty from each city go on; after the finishers are counted the rest of the spots are filled with the contestants who made it the furthest the fastest. After city finals, winners go on to national finals in Las Vegas where they will face an incredibly difficult four stage obstacle course. If they complete all four stages, the contestant will win $1,000,000! This course is so difficult that no contestant has ever won the prize money.

What I love most about American Ninja Warrior is the stories of the contestants. Like many other reality TV shows, many of the contestants are highlighted and their stories are shared before their run. Almost every contestant has overcome great obstacles on their journey to be the next American Ninja Warrior.

Most inspiring to me are the people who have overcome great physical challenges and now are fulfilling their dream to be a Ninja Warrior. Just last week I watched Ryan Ripley’s amazing run. Ryan has Cystic Fibrosis. When he was born, his mom was told he wouldn’t make it past five years old. Now he’s competing on one of the most physically demanding courses in the world. Watch his inspirational run below to see how he did!

Are you hooked yet?! There are so many life lessons you can learn from American Ninja Warrior, I want to share a couple that apply to those of us who are chronically ill or care for someone who is ill.

One Warrior’s success does not make the other Warriors failures. Each contestant runs the obstacles alone; it’s the course they are fighting. At this stage, one contestant can finish the course, hit the buzzer, and go on to the next round…and so can the next contestant!

It’s the same way with chronic illness. We live in a competitive world and sometimes we take things too far. Let’s be honest, how many of us have had negative thoughts about our chronically ill friend who just got good news from their doctor? (Please tell me I’m not the only horrible person out there!) We think it’s not fair. Why are they getting good news while we feel miserable? But friends, this shouldn’t be! Their good news does not make us failures. Next time the good news could be ours, and if it is, don’t we want our friends to celebrate with us?

Everyone is trying to win, yet they cheer for their fellow competitors. I love this. This is biblical. Romans 12:15 (ESV) says, “Rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep.” Ninja Warriors have an instant connection with each other because they all want the same thing. They make friends quickly, and when their friend is running the course they’re right there alongside them, cheering them on. They cheer, jump up and down, and scream when their friend hits that buzzer at the end of the course…or they are ready with a hug, a pat on the back, and encouraging words when they fall.

How much more should we rejoice with those who rejoice and weep with those who weep? As people who love Jesus we have an instant connection with each other. As people who live with chronic illness, we share a special bond. So let’s be there for each other, really be there, in the good times and in the bad.

We’re all at different places in our journey with chronic illness. We will all have victories and falls as we walk our paths toward diagnosis and maybe, just maybe, healing.

Your success doesn’t make me a failure. My success doesn’t make you a failure. Every victory, no matter how big or small, needs to be celebrated with gusto! So what do you say? Do you want to be a Chronic Illness Ninja Warrior? I do!

What victory can we celebrate with you? Share it in the comments and let’s cheer for each other! If you’re struggling right now, share that too, and let us weep with you. 

By Josie Siler

I’ve been on an epic quest to kill my enemy. I never pictured myself a murderer, but if I’m honest, all I want is for my enemy to die. I want him dead and out of my life forever.

Are you shocked? You won’t be once you hear my story.

It all started a couple nights ago. I was lying in bed, sound asleep, minding my own business. That’s when I heard it. A scratching sound perked my ears and awoke me from my much coveted slumber. In my sleep induced stupor my brain couldn’t quite process what it was hearing.

In a moment it all because terribly clear. The scampering of tiny little toenails running across my hardwood floor shot straight to my brain as I bolted up in bed.

My hand shook as I reached for the switch on the small yellow lamp perched precariously on my nightstand. Could it be? My eyes quickly skimmed the room looking for the evidence I didn’t want to see.

Just as I was about to turn my light off and convince myself the noises were just in my head, I saw a shadow on the other side of the door. This shadow, it moved.

In the middle of my plea to God asking for deliverance a head peaked under the door, quickly followed by the sweep of a tail and the sound of little feet.

A rodent! My fears were confirmed.

I jumped out of bed, grabbed a garbage can to drop on his fat little head, and began to hunt my enemy. After searching the house I came up empty.

Convinced the mouse turned and ran because he saw my light, I proceeded to get a fitful night’s sleep under the glow of my bedside lamp.

Since that night I’ve been on a hunt to find and kill the evil rodent. To date the rodent is winning. I’ve decided it’s a shrew. Shrews are smarter than mice and whatever is in my house is smart. It’s tricky, evil, and enjoys messing with me.

I’m not afraid anymore; I’m angry. 

1 Peter 5:8 tells us to “Stay alert! Watch out for your great enemy, the devil. He prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour (NLT).” If my shrew were a lion he would be much easier to find and to fight.

We all know to be on the lookout for the devil, the roaring lion who wants to devour us. However, I firmly believe that sometimes the devil works more like a rodent than a lion.

When we don’t fall for his overt attacks and temptations, he switches tactics. He subtly tries to destroy us. He messes with us just enough that we’re distracted, off our game.

It’s like how the rodent in my house distracts me. The thought of him is always in the back of my mind. I added eight traps upstairs to the four already in my basement. After I found my lip gloss moved from the box on the end of my counter to the bottom of my sink I added eight more traps to my kitchen. And I got mad. When I woke up to find a trap set off, but no rodent, I got really mad.

In a similar way, when we realize that the devil is toying with us, our fear turns to anger. How dare he? How dare he indeed! We are children of the King of kings and Lord of lords. Satan was defeated at the cross. He holds no power over us except what we allow him to wield.

My rodent may mess with me, but in the end, I will win. He will die and I will be at peace.

The devil will mess with us. He just will; there’s no escaping it. However, we don’t have to live in fear of him. He has already been defeated and one day He will be thrown into the pit, never to bother us again.

When we see the atrocities happening in our world, it’s easy to be fearful. It’s easy to give the devil more credit than he deserves. It’s easy to forget that God has already won the war.

We need to remember that God can take the most horrendous of situations and create something good. He can shine the light of His love into the darkest of circumstances, allowing His glory to heal our brokenness.

Our hearts break at pain we see in the world, even as we fight our own battles. We’re prepared to be on the lookout for the prowling lion, but we must also be prepared to do battle with a small rodent. A lion can devour you with a few bites, but those rodents can devour you as well – nibble by tiny nibble.

How do we do battle against the lion and the rodent? 1 Peter 5:9 gives us the answer. “Stand firm against him, and be strong in your faith. Remember that your family of believers all over the world is going through the same kind of suffering you are.”

We should also put on the armor found in Ephesians 6 to protect ourselves against the enemy. Always remember that you don’t fight alone. Let’s commit to pray for each another because together we’re stronger. We can be confident of victory in each battle because the Lord is on our side and He has already won the war.