“I’m Speechless… God did it!”

I can’t believe it, there are no words, but I have to share… Today marks 41 days since God healed me from an autoimmune disease I have suffered with for 19 years!!!   I’m still trying to process it all.  I’m speechless!  I always hoped it would happen, but didn’t think it would… and now I don’t even know what to think.  God totally surprised me!  I’m both overwhelmed with emotion and excited all at once.  Wow God!!!

Thank you, thank you, thank you to all that have interceded and lifted me up faithfully in prayer.  Your prayers made a huge difference in all seasons of my journey!  You are my spiritual tribe of rock stars!!!  I love and appreciate you!!!

DISCLAIMER:  

For all those I share my story with, I add this extra disclaimer…

“Please reconsider Jesus and where you have placed Him in your life.  He is alive and has done amazing things in my life and I know He wants to do incredible things in your life too!”

Here is my story….

It happened at a Friday night service we had at my church.  I was running late, but found a seat near the front.  I put my stuff down and stepped into the aisle way to give God all my attention in worship, as we sang songs of praise to Him.  I didn’t want any distractions.  That night was a prayer and worship night.  I had challenged the small group I taught on Wednesday night to do something new that night, to shake things up with their relationship with God.  It could be sitting in a new place, moving away from everyone else during the worship time (to focus more on God), or simply singing out loud to the songs (when normally they never did).

I challenged them to seek a HEART knowledge of God.  Many are content with just a HEAD knowledge of God.  They know all about God, but they don’t really know Him in an “up close and personal” way.  I encouraged them to seek “God Moments” that can become Landmarks of Faith on their journey with Him… special moments with God to look back on and know (beyond a shadow of a doubt) that He is real!!!

I decided that I needed to lead the way and take my own advice to shake things up.  Before I knew it, I was on the front row, standing and worshiping, with both hands raised in surrender.   It wasn’t long, until I fell down on my knees seeking Him passionately in prayer.  

I don’t know what song we were singing, but I felt very broken as I was pouring my heart out to God.  I was very frustrated.  I had been sick all week long. When I was finally able to see the doctor, he shared suspicions of it being Diverticulitis (the condition that put me in the hospital for 49 days in 2022).  “No… Not this again!”  I thought.  “It just couldn’t be that!”

I was sharing with God all of my frustration in its rawest sense.  I was so tired of all of this.  I knew that God had more for me than sitting at home half the day…  run down, sick, icing my body, hoping to have enough energy to do things and make it through the day.  I knew He had better for me!  I was angry at all the things I had been dealing with;  I was angry with the symptoms and side effects, not my God.  As a result, I started rebuking all sickness in my body (specifically) that I have dealt with lately and told it to go in Jesus name.  I was more broken then I have ever been.

As I sat in the quiet of my emotions, I felt God speak something radical to me.  It was a hard thing.  I questioned it over and over, but He made it very clear to me that it was Him that said it.  What was it?  I feel like He said, “Stop taking your medicine… all of it!”  

My reaction was… “What?  Did I hear that right?”  God wanted me to stop everything I was taking, cold turkey!  “But, I take a lot of medicine and some of them are very necessary to prevent Myasthenia Gravis from flaring up again.”  It was currently under control and had been for the last year. I sat there on the floor, on my knees reviewing the ramifications of what could happen to my body, if I obeyed God.  

I just wasn’t sure.  I felt like God kept confirming over and over to me, that I don’t have to doubt His voice. I learned to hear it clearly over the summer (in my pursuit of Him) and have obeyed His leading confidently.  He kept saying over and over to me, “You know my voice, I am the one asking you to do this.”  “Would you choose to do this on your own?”  I felt like He said… “You trust Me in all other areas of your life, why not this one?  Why can you believe this for others, but not for yourself?”

The Proverbs 3:5-6 passage kept playing in my mind over and over… “Trust Me and don’t lean on your own understanding.  I will lead the way and see you through.”  I just kept saying,  “This is hard, God.”  “You are asking me to do a HARD thing.”  I felt like His response was… “Wasn’t I there, when you did hard things over the summer?  Didn’t I see you through it and impact lives in powerful ways, as a result of your obedience?  Do you trust Me?  You should know by now that I wouldn’t ask you to do something hard, if I didn’t have a purpose for it.”

I reluctantly surrendered and said,  “Okay, but this is going to be hard.”  As I looked up from the floor (trying to process everything), I saw an amazing woman of God in front of me on the platform.  She had felt like God wanted her to stop all of her medicine, the year before (at our Sisterhood Weekend), and it totally changed her life!  If she could do it, I could do it too!  I asked her to pray for me before I left that night and the rest is history.

I am currently on Day 41.  I can’t say that it has been easy, but God has been SO faithful.  For those that don’t know, I’ve struggled with an autoimmune disease called Myasthenia Gravis for 19 years and have taken 18 + medications to manage it.  The best way to explain this disease is that it is similar to Multiple Sclerosis, in the sense that it affects the muscles and weakens them… however it doesn’t get progressively worse.  It causes flare ups, like Fibromyalgia might, where the muscle weakness could get bad for a while and then all of the sudden improve. There have been lots of extremes with this disease and unpredictability.  There have been good seasons and bad.  At its worst I was bedridden for a year struggling to swallow water, eat solid food, or even take care of myself; while at its best (in remission) I was able to complete the Indianapolis Mini Marathon 5k walk!

To say it has been frustrating dealing with this, is an understatement.  The medications that I have taken to just manage my life (helping it be as seemingly normal as possible), have caused side effects requiring more medication to fix things.  Each medication has come with its own bucket of issues.  I am currently working through getting 19 years of toxic medicine out of my body and it’s not fun.

It’s a process, but I know God has healed me!  
Without a doubt, I know that NOT taking some of the medication (that I have taken for the past 19 years), would have placed me in the hospital by Day 7 (or maybe sooner).  I would have started to get really weak, my original symptoms would have surfaced making it difficult to lift my head, my eyes would have started drooping, that would have led to double vision, trouble swallowing, slurred speech and the like…

BUT GOD had something different in mind.  I’m not sure why God healed me now, but I’m SO thankful He did!!  That is not all of the story, but it’s the highlighted, abbreviated version.  I’m currently working on finishing a book I’ve been writing for nearly 12 years.  It’s a Bible Study on the life of Joseph (the one thrown into a pit).  It draws parallels from my own life and now boy do I have an incredible ending for it! 

The rest of my healing story (in detail) will be in my book. I’m hoping to get it finished by Jan. 1st.  It will be entitled…“Where Messy Faith Meets a Mighty God- Nothing is Wasted.” God has been SO faithful during all seasons of my life.  I hope you will check out the book when it comes available.

I’m not sure where you are on your faith journey, but one thing I know beyond a shadow of doubt, is that God is real.  He loves us and cares about the details of our lives.  Please reconsider Jesus and where you have placed Him in your life.  He is worth all your surrender, friends.  A life completely surrendered to Him is life changing!  I’m still processing everything

(as I said before), but would be happy to chat with you if you have any questions about my faith journey or yours.  I love you all!

Newly healed and forever thankful!!!

Julie