Rachel L McManus

  I thought my darkest days ended when my husband came out of his coma. I was wrong. God has had us on this journey for a reason although I am not quite sure why, other than His Name be glorified. When our life suddenly changed in November of 2019, I expected it to eventually get back to 'normal'. It hasn't and it never will. Our lives keep changing every few months. Sometimes weekly it seems, just when I get used to things being one way, something else changes with him or something in our lives and it turns us topsy- turvy again.  The first few weeks and months after his stroke and coma, he was having to relearn things. His speech was affected not only by how he pronounced things, but his descriptions of things, his command of the language itself was teetered on the edge of almost non existent. He switched words around and got frustrated when I couldn't understand him and he couldn't understand me. He couldn't tell you what the name of a clock was, could mainly...

 There are two types of loving yourself. There is being conceited, prideful, and arrogant thinking you’re better than everyone, which is a sin and there is naturally loving yourself. Naturally loving yourself is being thankful of what God made. Scripture never says to love yourself because it is normal to love yourself. No one has to tell you because it just comes naturally. Naturally we love ourselves so Scriptures teaches us to love our neighbors as we love ourselves.  On the other hand, Scripture does warn us about self-love. Our focus should not be on ourselves. We must trade self-centered love for agape love. Loving yourself too much shows selfishness and arrogance which God hates. It leads to self-criticism and the sin of boasting. Take your eyes off of yourself and look at the interests of other people. Love others as yourself. If you can't love yourself, how is it then that you can love others? Don’t focus on yourself, instead focus on the awesome love that God has for...