Who Am I?

I am Anna. I am much more than what you can see. Parts and pieces of me are there for every eye to see. Just as my fleshly body is made of parts unseen and invisible, so is my soul – so is my spirit.

For those people who say they cannot believe what is not seen with eyes, held with hands, or heard with ears, we must conclude they do not believe in love, because God is love, and God is invisible. Therefore they deny God's existence. They cannot believe in a Creator, a Redeemer, a heavenly Advocate, a Giver of grace – a Saviour.

If God's existence is denied, then He could not be the author of right and wrong, therefore we could have no standard of conduct or even of thought process. In fact we could not assign any value or importance to our thoughts because they cannot be seen or touched therefore do not exist. This being true, my own personhood would be nothing more than a meaningless fragment without purpose – without meaning – unable to accomplish a single thing. The parts of me that are not visible would not exist, therefore could not be used to reach any conclusion or enable me to believe in or do anything.

Any thinking person can see this is not – no CANNOT be so. This faulty premise could not even be reached. There could be no truth.

But God says in Romans 1:20, “The invisible things of Him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead.”

We are more than can be seen or perceived by our senses. And because of that we will make decisions and react to life around us according to our beliefs. It is my belief that I am a person of value in God's eyes. I am more than a diseased body. I react to this PD. I am not just a broken body with PD. What I do with this set of circumstances will tell the world what I believe, and who I am.

God didn't make PD. It is not mentioned in the Creation account. It is however a natural consequence of sin. It is a part of the curse Adam saddled all of Creation with. It is a direct result of his sin. We can't change this.

So what does your daily walk reveal to the world about what you believe and who you are? Do you believe you are more than a mistake? Are you more than tremors and slow movement, or any of the other painful manifestations of this disease? Examine your thoughts and look at your actions. What do these say to the world? What do these say to the children that you love, your spouse, and your friends? What do these say to all of the people in your life who do not believe in Jesus Christ and who are headed for the outer darkness of the domain of evil? What are you saying to God as you go through your day? You SAY that you are a Believer. You will know if your attitudes and actions are in agreement with your words. PD is just one test to determine what you believe.

Whatever your trial, know that it is a test that will reveal the truth about what you believe....

Life Has Nothing to Do With Disease

I have pondered why is it so devastating when we are given the dreaded diagnosis of PD?  Is it the loss of ability within our body that grieves us, or the state of dependance on others that is so hard to accept - the loss of control?  Is it the fact that we are made different than the "normal" person - so we no longer fit the mold?
Whether we have PD or not we will grow old, and deal with the same loss of ability in our body, and slowly lose control.  We must adjust our perception of life either way.  Life is more - much more than the abilities we have or the work we accomplish.  It is more than our short existence on the earth.  Life carries with it the ability to see beyond our earthly existence, and to choose that life.  Life is what we need more of.
Life with PD can seem a terrible thing.  We weary of the fight to maintain - the fight to hang onto our diminishing abilities; we stiffin against our growing needs.  But what we are really resisting is not the loss of life in our bodies, but the entrance of death.  John 10:10 tells us that Jesus says, "I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full."  Who is Jesus referring to when he says, "they"?  He is talking not just to people who are blessed with good health, but to ALL of His sheep - with or without PD.  He has come to give you life to the fullest.  Hear His offer; believe it; embrace it; enjoy it....