Tag Archives: healing

Just a little slump…

Posted on May 13, 2021 by florencejoy

The truth is that the last little while has felt good. I have felt good. I was much relieved to know that what I was experiencing after mum died was exactly what it should have been – grief – & … Continue reading →

Posted in Ramblings | Tagged bereavement, Christianity, communion with God, faith, grief, healing, Let love in, loss, Love of the father, mental health, mental health awareness, open hearts, Opening up, relationship not religion, Self acceptance, unfolding | Leave a comment

With Love – On World Mental Health Day 2018

Posted on October 10, 2018 by florencejoy

I have experienced episodes of depression. Although they have, at times, felt random – as if they’ve come out of nowhere – I have learned that there is always a trigger for me, as well as a source. For me, my … Continue reading →

Posted in Ramblings | Tagged anti-depressants, bereavement, brokenness, Christians and mental health, counselling, darkness, death, depression, despair, faith, grief, healing, hope, intimacy, intimacy with God, loss, Medication, melancholy, mental health, open heart, openness, pain, prayer, sadness, seasons of sadness, sharing, therapy, transparency, Trauma, Vulnerability, wholeness, World mental health day, World Mental Health Day 2018, worldmentalhealthday, worldmentalhealthday2018 | Leave a comment

Finding Life…

Posted on May 16, 2018 by florencejoy

I see the cross
A new day dawns
Rising from death
The whole earth yawns
It’s waking up
Life’s stretching out
Faith’s unfurling
Outgrowing doubt Continue reading →

Posted in Poems | Tagged Christianity, cross of christ, death, faith, freedom, God's love, healing, heaven, hope, joy, life, love, new life, Resurrection, suffering, the cross | Leave a comment

Something New / Open Your Heart

Posted on April 29, 2018 by florencejoy

“I’m letting Jesus in to that place. I am voicing it. I am inviting Him. He is going there because I have asked Him to, I have allowed Him to. We are going there together.

And He is doing something new.” Continue reading →

Posted in Ramblings | Tagged Christianity, faith, fear, God's work, healing, hiding, hope, Jesus, life, liminality, new life, open your heart, openness, pain, relationship with Jesus, renewal, restoration, Resurrection, something new, speech, stillness, stillness of His presence, transformation | Leave a comment

Making Space For Grace…

Posted on April 17, 2018 by florencejoy

“But I know that recovery is possible, restoration is possible, renewal is possible, redemption is possible, resurrection is possible.

I know I can be found again. Not by any wishful thinking that any of our past can be undone. It can’t. We must grieve our pasts and move on.

But we can be found again at the cross of Christ. We can be found again as sons and daughters of God, our Father. We can be found again because of what God made possible: when He came to earth as man, to walk with us and suffer with us, and suffer for us, paying the penalty of our sin and not-good-enough-ness and making a way through death and back to life again.

I will not find myself by pining for a person I may feel I once was. But I can be made new in Christ by facing up to myself – all the ugly bits, all the rotten bits, all the sinful, shameful bits, all the bits that have tried and failed and fallen short, all the bits that wished they weren’t, all the painful bits – the bits that really hurt – all the hidden and buried and dark and locked away bits. If I can see myself as I truly am and if I can truly face up to my own fears, failures, neediness, inadequacy and dependence – and relinquish control, relinquish independence – then I may be able to enter in to all that God has for me. Then I may be able to make space for His grace.”

“It is time. It is time for life. It is time for freedom. It is time for healing, for grace, for resurrection power. It is time for acknowledging my need of Jesus. It is time for laying down my foolish pride. It is time for repentance. It is time to stop hiding. It is time for fear to flee. It is time to let God in, to let Jesus in, to let His life-giving, death-overcoming, freedom-bringing, power-releasing Spirit in.” Continue reading →

Posted in Ramblings | Tagged abundance, barren, battered, Beauty from ashes, beauty in the broken, being silenced, breaking the silence, breathless, brokenness, children of God, Christianity, control, controlling relationship, death, depression, desert, desert place, desperation, expression, faith, Father God, fear, finding my voice, finding peace, forgiveness, freedom, frozen, future, God, God as Father, God's love, grace, grace of God, healing, hope, hopelessness, hurts, identity, intimacy, Jesus, joy, life, loss, loss of self, made new, neediness, new life, numb, pain, past, past wounds, present, present hope, pride, redemption, relationships, religion, renewal, restoration, Resurrection, strength, suffocating, survival, survival mode, the cross, trapped, truth, Vulnerability, wake up o sleeper, weakness, wholeness, wounded | Leave a comment

Depression (Part 4) – Love wants to absorb pain…

Posted on February 22, 2015 by florencejoy

Love wants to absorb pain. On Friday morning my son fell and hit his head against some shelves. I was in the next door room and I could tell from his cry that he was really hurting. I ran to … Continue reading →

Posted in Ramblings | Tagged Abba, abiding, anti-depressants, blue, community, confused, counselling, demotivated, depressed, depression, faith, fatigue, fear, feeling down, God, God's presence, healing, heartache, heaven, hope, hopelessness, illness, Jesus, joy, longing, low, mental health, mood, motherhood, pain, parenting, past wounds, personality, psychotherapy, sad, sharing, spirituality, stressed, suffering, the cross, tiredness, trusting God, Vulnerability, weakness, weariness, wholeness | Leave a comment

Depression (Part 2) – So what now?

Posted on February 10, 2015 by florencejoy

The next day, on Thursday, I sent an email out to friends. I owed them an update on our son’s progress anyway and I thought I would let them know that I was in a bit of a ‘dip’ myself. … Continue reading →

Posted in Ramblings | Tagged anti-depressants, community, depression, faith, God, healing, health, heaven, home, hope, hopelessness, life, longing, love, marriage, mental health, pain, parenting, past wounds, personality, sharing, spirituality, stress, Vulnerability, weakness | Leave a comment

20 November 2014 – What’s next for Tobi-Wan Kenobi (Toby)…

Posted on November 25, 2014 by florencejoy

Someone, somewhere’s praying for me…because this morning I felt all full of worry and uncertainty again about little Toby and now I am feeling much more of a peace…So thank you, whoever you may be! :-) I didn’t say much … Continue reading →

Posted in Toby | Tagged answered prayer, anxiety, Asher, baby, blood CK, calcium levels, children's health, chromosome 7, colic, colicky, DDD, Deciphering Developmental Disorders, developmental delay, Downs Syndrome, faith, genes, geneticist, growth problems, happy temperament, healing, homocysteine, medicalised, metabolism, micro-array CGH, miracles, parenting, plasma amino acids, Prader-Willi Syndrome, prayer, prayer request, premature baby, prematurity, thankfulness, thyroid function tests, trust, trusting God, uric acid, urine amino acids, urine organic acids, weight concerns, Williams Syndrome, wisdom, worry | Leave a comment

Fact 30/30 – I delivered Toby on my own…

Posted on November 4, 2014 by florencejoy

January 15th 2014 Fact 30/30 I delivered Toby on my own… 2013 was, I think, the most difficult of my life. Very early on in the year, just three days after my birthday in fact, an early pregnancy scan revealed … Continue reading →

Posted in #30til30 | Tagged 2 Corinthians, 2 Corinthians 12:19, aloneness, answered prayer, baby, bereavement, bilateral inguinal hernia, blessing, child birth, children's health, compassion, contractions, death, delivery, Emmanuel, faith, God's faithfulness, God's goodness, God's presence, God's provision, GORD, grace, grief, healing, holes in the heart, Immanuel, impossibility, losing a baby, losing a child, miracles, miscarriage, missed miscarriage, motherhood, neonatal unit, parenting, possibility, prayer, pregnancy, premature baby, premature birth, premature labour, prematurity, unborn baby | Leave a comment

Fact 27/30 – I bought Ed a painting as a wedding gift…

Posted on November 4, 2014 by florencejoy

January 12th 2014 Fact 27/30 I bought Ed a painting as a wedding gift… To be honest, it was really a present for the both of us. Something I thought would serve as a beautiful reminder and anchor throughout our … Continue reading →

Posted in #30til30 | Tagged 2 Corinthians, 2 Corinthians 10:5, art, belief, betrayal, challenge, Christ, committment, covenant, doubt, dreams, expectations, faith, fear, forgiveness, freedom, God, God's love, grace, healing, hopes, insecurities, jealousy, Jesus, love, marriage, perfection, prayer, reality, redemption, relationships, safety, security, steadiness, Tim Steward, wedding gift, woundedness | Leave a comment

Fact 21/30 – I met Ed in Argentina…

Posted on November 4, 2014 by florencejoy

January 6th 2014 Fact 21/30 I met Ed in Argentina… Well, strictly speaking I met him on a train to Lewes where we would go on a team training weekend together. But really, it was in Argentina that we got … Continue reading →

Posted in #30til30 | Tagged Argentina, Bible, Brent Curtis, Christian Union, church, depression, doubt, envisioning, faith, forgiveness, freedom, friendship, God, healing, intimacy, John Eldredge, Latin Link, mission, relationships, restorative, service, short-term mission trip, sin, The Sacred Romance, travel, truth, Word | Leave a comment

Fact 17/30 – I met my first boyfriend when I was 16…

Posted on November 4, 2014 by florencejoy

January 2nd 2014 Fact 17/30 I met my first boyfriend when I was 16… Well, strictly speaking there was Dale, when I was about 11/12, who was the son of my brother, Will’s football manager at Cumnor Minors FC! But … Continue reading →

Posted in #30til30 | Tagged boyfriends, faith, falling in love, first boyfriend, healing, heartbreak, identity, infatuation, love, memories, redemption, relationships, self-worth, teenage years, trust, trusting God, young love | Leave a comment

Fact 8/30 – My dad died when I was 7…

Posted on November 4, 2014 by florencejoy

December 24th 2013 Fact 8/30 My dad died when I was 7… Whilst we were in Yorkshire my dad was diagnosed with cancer. It had started in the pancreas but by the time it was discovered it had spread to … Continue reading →

Posted in #30til30 | Tagged cancer, childhood, death, eternity, faith, family life, healing, heaven, hope, Jesus, memories, pancreatic cancer, questioning, trust, trusting God | Leave a comment

A near miss with A&E…

Posted on November 4, 2014 by florencejoy

We had a near miss with A&E yesterday. After being treated at home with steroids for croup last week, I took Toby back to the doctors yesterday, suspecting he’d developed a secondary chest infection. His respiratory rate was up to … Continue reading →

Posted in Toby | Tagged A&E, antibiotics, baby, breathing difficulties, Calpol, chest infection, children's health, croup, faith, geneticist, healing, health, high respiratory rate, ill health, Isaiah 53, Isaiah 53:4-5, parenting, prayer, premature baby, Romans 8, Romans 8:26, steroids, weeping, Williams Syndrome | Leave a comment

28 July 2014 – All things Toby…

Posted on October 28, 2014 by florencejoy

Hello friends, It’s been over three weeks since our last update so I thought I would fill you in on news from recent hospital visits and progress etc. A few weeks ago I was reading over some of those first … Continue reading →

Posted in Toby | Tagged answered prayer, AVSD, blessing of life, breathing difficulties, bring your soul into blossom, cardiologist, children's health, chromosome check, cow's milk allergy, cow's milk protein hypersensitivity, cranio-facial, death, diuretics, eternity, everlasting love, faith, faithfulness, feeding, feeding concerns, feeding problems, friends, G-tube, geneticist, gift of children, gift of life, glimpses of eternity, God's faithfulness, gratitude, gross motor delay, healing, heaven, hole in the heart, hope, lyrics, Metopic Synostosis, mild low tone, miracle, music, NG tube, Nutramigen AA, parenting, Prader-Willi Syndrome, SALT, short memories, song, songwriting, Speech and Language Therapy, swallow study, thankfulness, the blossoming soul, trust, tube feeding, video fluoroscopy, VSD, weaning | Leave a comment

19 June 2014 – Toby’s Update…

Posted on October 28, 2014 by florencejoy

Hello friends, We had an appointment with the gastroenterologist this morning. We are going ahead with the gastroscopy on Monday morning, in order to eliminate the nagging question mark that still lingers as to whether there is anything wrong in … Continue reading →

Posted in Toby | Tagged 9 month old, baby, children's health, Craniosynostosis, delayed development, developmental delay, developmental milestones, duodentitis, faith, friendship, gastroscopy, God is good, healing, Metopic Synostosis, neck strength, neurological, NNU, oesophagitis, paediatric gastroenterologist, parenting, prayer request, rolling, sitting up, steadfastness, support, Tobias, TOF, tracheoesophageal fistula, trust, trusting God, upper airway secretions, video fluoroscopy | Leave a comment

10 January 2014 – Smiles & news…

Posted on October 26, 2014 by florencejoy

Toby has recovered well from his hernia op last Friday. We think the op has seemed to help his bowel movements, which now seem more regular, so that’s got to be good (even if you’d rather not know about our … Continue reading →

Posted in Toby | Tagged baby, breathlessness, challenging, children's health, colic, crying, desperate, Dom Perignon, Domperidone, faith, family life, feeding, feeding concerns, friendship, fussiness, Gastro Oesophageal Reflux Disease, God's faithfulness, GORD, healing, health, hope, pain, parenting, prayer, prayer request, premature baby, prematurity, reflux, refusal to feed, trust, trusting God, wheezing | Leave a comment

27 November 2013 – Ed’s work situation & Toby’s heart etc.!…

Posted on October 26, 2014 by florencejoy

So, tomorrow is Ed’s last day working for the property company, where he has worked as an electrician in their maintenance wing for just over a year now. You will remember from my last update that they gave him a … Continue reading →

Posted in Toby | Tagged baby, cardiology, children's health, diuretics, feeding, feeding difficulties, healing, hernia, hole in the heart, inguinal hernia, laboured breathing, open heart surgery, parenting, patience, petition, prayer, prematurity, recessing under rib cage, redundancy, siblings, stress, toddler, VSD, waiting, weariness | Leave a comment

18 November 2014 – The power of prayer & the wonder of Church family – A Facebook ‘petition’…

Posted on October 26, 2014 by florencejoy

If you have prayed or are praying for Toby, please will you write your name below? I was thinking about that verse in Philippians 4, which talks about presenting our requests to God ‘by prayer and petition’… It helped me … Continue reading →

Posted in Toby | Tagged bear one another's burdens, children's health, church, church family, community, facebook, faith, family, friendship, global, healing, lighten the load, parenting, petition, Philippians 4, prayer, prayer request | Leave a comment

5 November 2013 – Toby’s cardiology review…

Posted on August 13, 2014 by florencejoy

Thank you for your messages/emails this morning, remembering our appointment with the cardiologist. We have just returned from there, with good news… The cardiologist diagnosed Toby with having a VSD (Ventricular Septal Defect) as opposed to an AVSD (Atrioventricular Septal … Continue reading →