"Not By Sight" helps friends and family to see the courage and faith that abounds in those with debilitating conditions! It also gives them simple, pragmatic examples of "What to say" and "What not to say" in order to truly be a source of encouragement.

As believers, we often wrestle with understanding how God can allow a person who worships Him to become ill, in pain or disabled. Unfortunately, often the first assumption we have about a believer with a continuing illness is that they must not have enough faith or they must be hiding a sin. Sadly, this can be devastating to those who love the Lord and who are actually living by the faith despite their circumstances that God wants us all to live.

This booklet explains our natural responses to those debilitated by chronic conditions and gives many examples of how to be a true encourager to our brothers and sisters in need! It is full of Scripture and quotes from physicians who specialize in chronic conditions. It is a must for all believers, church staff and ministry leaders!

Not By Sight is based upon the knowledge learned by the true life experiences of Wayne and Sherri Connell, as well as countless others who live with debilitating conditions. All of her life, Sherri was an extremely active person who loved her careers, singing and dancing in musicals, riding her horse and lifting weights. In college, she studied Music Theatre, then obtained 2 Bachelor Degrees in Business, with a Minor in Liberal Arts.

Although Sherri had enormous plans for her life, just as she was plotting out her Master's Degree, she was stopped in her tracks at the age of 27. Starting with another winter bout of pneumonia, Sherri became paralyzed, so sick she could barely sit up and was in horrible pain. She was hospitalized and diagnosed with Progressive Multiple Sclerosis and Late-Chronic Lyme Disease. Suddenly, she went from "on the go" 24/7 to struggling just to get to a doctor's appointment or take a shower.

Shortly after the onset of Sherri's disability, to help her cope with her losses and un-welcomed changes, she began to write in her journal. Despite the seriousness of Sherri's illness, people often had difficulty understanding how she could "look good" to them, even though she was very sick. Unfortunately, because of these misconceptions, people often jumped to the conclusion that she was just being lazy, unmotivated or was not trying hard enough. For a goal oriented, talented, career driven person like Sherri, these notions were absolutely devastating.

When Wayne realized there were so many other people around the world being hurt by the same lack of understanding that Sherri was experiencing, his passion quickly grew from being his wife's supporter, to being an advocate for all who are living with disabilities. Thus, Wayne founded, Where Is God Ministries. He also compiled this booklet, Not By Sight, which contains excerpts from Sherri's journal. WIGM prints and distributes this booklet to give believers living with chronic conditions a voice about how they feel, what they need and how others can be an encouragement!

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Table of Contents:

Not By Sight

Table of Contents:

About the Authors

About Where Is God Ministries

Dedication, Acknowledgements and Thanks

Foreword Read Online!

PART ONE: Ministering to Believers Living With Chronic Conditions

Chapter One: The Heartbreak of Seeing Them Suffer Read Online!

PART TWO: Recognizing Our Discouraging Responses

Chapter Two: Struggling With What to Say

Chapter Three: But They LOOK So Good

Chapter Four: What’s the Big Deal

Chapter Five: I Can’t Handle It

Chapter Six: They Must Be Doing Something Wrong

PART THREE: Discovering Some Encouraging Steps

Chapter Seven: Knowing the Individual Situation

Chapter Eight: Validate and Grieve

Chapter Nine: Show Admiration

Chapter Ten: Adjust and Adapt

Chapter Eleven: Cope and Support

PART FOUR: Bringing It All Together In Love

Chapter Twelve: The Problem

Chapter Thirteen: The Solution

Chapter Fourteen: Not By Sight

85 pages, softcover from Where is God Ministries.

• But You Look So Good!
  
• Beyond Casseroles: 505 Ways to Encourage a Chronically Ill Friend
• Being Sick Well
• The Lonely Patient: How we Experience Illness
• Just Fine: Unmasking Concealed Chronic Illness And Pain