Thrive_Autumn 2019 digital issue

20 / thrive Autumn 2019
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Marilyn Jones, wife to Fellowship President Steve Jones
In October 2014, I fell on a cobblestone road in Greece, injuring my leg, ankle, and back. I soon realized it was not a simple
fix—it would be a life-altering trauma. The first hurdle I was to face was PAIN, which would define my life from then on.
I was forced to allow others to care for me as I lay in a hospital, when I struggled to navigate in a wheelchair, and when I
finally accepted that I must use a cane to walk.
A friend gave me a book entitled, A Place of Healing: If God can heal me, why won’t He? I took one look at it, thanked her, and
put it aside. It took me two weeks to open it. Every word she shared was a mirror of my life… feelings of helplessness, anger,
pride, and most of all, grief. Grief over the loss of my previous life: my independent nature, my
career as a critical care nurse, my passion to help and care for others, and alterations in my relationships
with family and friends. Grief that after four surgeries, painful treatments, and medications, I
would suffer from chronic pain.
I have good days when I can thank the Lord for my journey and all those that have helped me
along the way, from the skilled surgeons who repaired my leg and gave me a titanium ankle, to my
husband Steve, who has had to adjust to the changes my injury has brought. This is not the life I
pictured for myself but a new, redefined life that is constantly forcing me to rely on the Lord for
strength to endure pain, grace to accept this new life, and thankfulness for those He has put in my
life to walk alongside me on this journey.