Nicole O'Meara | Blog — Nicole O'Meara

DEVOTIONAL: Worth the Effort

The hard task of climbing is good for me. I intentionally choose the challenge of climbing because I trust that it is good for me and I desire the results. Most days, I don’t look forward to the challenge but I love the “I’m alive!” feeling I get after the climb.⁠
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I feel the same way about reading God’s Word. Tempting thoughts come every day as I sit down to read and I must shove them aside and choose the challenge of focusing, reading, and listening. My reward is the feeling of intimacy with God I get during those times. I never regret the effort.⁠

Blog, DevotionalNicole O'MearaSeptember 28, 2021devotional, Joyful Life Magazine, Rare Hope SeriesComment

Book Review: The Scars that have Shaped Me

In The Scars That Have Shaped Me, Vaneetha Rendall Risner shares her story of life-long illness (Polio & Post-Polio Syndrome) and trials (death of a child and loss of her marriage) with simple writing and honesty.

A quick read packed with great theology. Vaneetha vulnerably reminds her reader of the unchanging character of God, even in the midst of illness and loss.

Blog, Book ReviewNicole O'MearaSeptember 7, 2021book review, lament, rare disease, chronic disease, scarsComment

How to Live an Anchored Life

Living with an undiagnosed disease means living with uncertainty. It feels like being untethered. I have so many questions, yet I rarely get answers.

The same word, “anchor,” used for firmly securing a ship to land is also the same word for pointing a ship into the wind during a storm. The omniscient character of God has grounded me time and time again when medical knowledge has failed me. The sovereignty and faithfulness of God keep me focused forward, towards eternity when my body will be healthy and whole, no longer surprising us with unexplainable brokenness. God as my anchor is my only hope.

BlogNicole O'MearaAugust 27, 2021anchor, hope, rare disease, chronic diseaseComment

DEVOTIONAL: Why, O Lord?

I struggle with asking why. It feels like a form of complaining or faithlessness. Are my whys a lack of trust in God who I know to be Sovereign over all, always good, never changing, loving, compassionate, and faithful? My friend’s death taught me I had more to learn about my God.

Blog, DevotionalNicole O'MearaJune 30, 2021devotional, lament, Rare Hope SeriesComment

Book Reviews: Undone (a Memoir) and Relentless by Michele Cushatt

In Undone, Michele shares openly all the emotions and faith questions that she experienced through her cancer experience. In Relentless, Michele walks you through the next phase of her life when cancer returns, when the orphans they brought home become theirs for life, and when she grieves the loss of her Dad to his own battle with cancer. It is personal, gut-wrenching, and oh so relatable.

Blog, Book ReviewNicole O'MearaJune 1, 2021cancer, faith, book review, Michele CushattComment

Feeling Numb: Signs, Symptoms and Help for Post Surgery Depression, the Common Side-effect Your Doctor Didn't Warn You About

Being numb is helpful during and after a thoracotomy but permanent numbness isn’t good for anyone.
The physical numbness that comes with surgery can move into an emotional and spiritual numbness in your soul. Feeling numb can be helpful but being numb is not healthy. We need to feel.

What do you need to move from numb to feeling?

BlogNicole O'MearaMay 14, 2021chronic disease, depression, scars, anxiety, Emotionally Healthy SpiritualityComment

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