One night Allen and her husband, Zac, began to pray. “God, we will do anything—anything,” slipped out of Zac’s mouth. Left were a tinge of fear and two lives now surrendered.

what seemed like a time for rejoicing began a new battle.

Allen took her studies to a writer’s festival. In 2011 Thomas Nelson contracted her to do a series of projects.

Just a shout-out to you, Peggy. We're already warriors, for sure, just trying to keep ourselves on an even keel with the limitations and the ups-and-downs. But we have some advantages too--much less distraction, for one thing. I'm with you in praying now for a coming together of those of us who are home-bound, for whatever reason, so that we can join our prayers and encourage one another, help each other grow. Dawn, Karen, will you join us? (Quick! Before this topic drops off the bottom of the active page! lol!) I can't wait to see what doors He'll open, because certainly our joined prayers would please Him!

Love this line...so darn true! "“That’s where I am. Obedience starts with getting out of bed, falling on your face, and trusting that Jesus is who he says he is. " Thanks for sharing this Trillia

Dear Dawn, I feel your suffering. I too feel housebound by a never ending disease. It falls in the chronic leukemia type disorder but, keeps me in bed most of the time with constant this or that. I'm sure you know what I mean! After reading your comment and the comments of others I wonder just how many people who were once physically active are frustrated like us? Perhaps we could be a prayer army for Christ!! Maybe we need to pray for some sort of organization means....just thinking, praying out loud.... Peggy

Hi Dawn, I can understand where you are coming from as I have seen everything I used to be able to do stripped away as my health dictates to me. I Love God with all my heart but have found it very hard to know what my purpose is. It feels as though everything that is in your heart that you want to do you can't so what is God asking for at this time? I guess I am learning a few things that what I do does not define me and my relationship with God. God just wants me, a relationship with me that over rides everything. So that my complete trust is in him so that what I do every minute or second of my day I know that it is not my strength but the strength that comes from him. I am still finding that very hard as I look out my window and so want to do what others are doing. You are an amazing woman Dawn and when you still have a breath to breath then God still hasn't finished with you yet.

Dawn, during the Middle Ages when the huge cathedrals were being built, the home-bound were bundled into blankets and carefully carted to the construction site, where they were fed and cared for. Their job there was to pray for the church, the safety of those working on the cathedral, the inspiration of the artisans crafting it, and each other. Perhaps a modern day equivalent would be if those of us who are restricted to our homes and often in pain had a vision for gathering in places like this and praying for the writers, editors and commentators, for the churches in our own areas and world-wide, and for one another. There are so many posts here from hurting people, and their cries are more than just words in cyberspace, they're our brothers and sisters, as close as our computer screen. Close enough to touch. I wanted to tell you that I too have prayed, literally day and night, for years. I've needed something to change, because the days and years stretch out ahead of me endlessly the same, only getting gradually more restricted. Years, I've been praying about this. How am I supposed to cope? Sometimes I'd fall apart, then screw up my courage and try to be accepting again. That is the trouble with this article--it doesn't even begin to tell how the surrender has to be daily, hourly, minute-by-minute, and how you can't possibly do that without collapsing sometimes. It seems to say this is all up to us, that we have to keep our focus and we have to do all the work of being content with impossible limitations. But we can't, and thankfully we don't have to. Our deliverance is God's work, not ours. How arrogant to think we can have a right mind all the time, or that a single moment of revelation is all we need to triumph over a lifetime of ills! Anyhow, I've prayed for years and in the last few weeks He has suddenly answered me in such an unexpected way, a way I could never have thought to ask. I won't go into specifics except to say I'm still the same, with the same limitations and the same descending future, but He found a way to bring something new into our lives that has enormously eased my days. Utterly unexpected. Wait for Him, Dawn. You can't even make up an answer to your prayers that could match what He's actually planning to do for you. It's okay to struggle, because He gets it, and He plans to "restore to you the years that the locust has eaten." Really!

Dawn, I"ll pray for you too. Wow. I heard a story on the radio last week while traveling to my son's medical appointments about two spinster women (I think they were sisters) who were housebound but had a heart for their community. They began to pray God would bring people into His kingdom, that He'd set His church on fire -- all sorts of things. They were very faithful to pray. And God ended up using their prayers to begin and ignite a huge revival in Wales (I hope I got the details right). What hit me in hearing the story was that from the outside people would say two housebound women could do nothing for God. They would say their lives were dull. But God didn't say either of these things. He used them in a mighty way. Dawn, I pray you come back and see that two of your siblings in Christ are praying for you. And I pray that God will open your eyes to how He sees you and the great plan He has for your life whether or not you can ever leave the house.

Dawn, praying for you now. Tim