Tag: Parkinson’s Disease

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A Reminder to be Thankful

I fell recently. Planted my face in the asphalt and knocked myself out. Broke my nose. My face was covered with scrapes and bruises. It looked like I had been hammered with an ugly stick. Pickleball is not for the faint of heart!

Thankfully, the CT scan in the ER showed no brain trauma. I do mean thankfully. I am thankful that the injuries were relatively minor and of short duration. The outcome could have been much worse.

This has reminded me of how thankful we should be for daily blessings from above. I am afraid that for too long I have taken for granted the gift of good health. The Parkinson’s diagnosis has reminded me how fragile and tentative life can be and how grateful I should be that God is holding me in the hollow of his hand.

Not long ago I was reading about how Nehemiah led the Jewish people in a celebratory ritual of thanksgiving. As a leader he wanted to impress upon the people the importance of taking time away from the routine of life to think about God’s blessings and to thank him.

God had brought them back home from a long captivity in Babylon and Persia. They had successfully rebuilt the city walls of Jerusalem. God had protected them from enemies. They had formally renewed their covenant relationship with God.

Now it was time to give thanks. Priests and Levites led liturgical prayers of thanks and praise. One of them was “Mattaniah . . . the director who led in thanksgiving and prayer” (Nehemiah 11:17). Some of them were musicians who “were sought out from where they lived and were brought to Jerusalem to celebrate joyfully the dedication with songs of thanksgiving” (Nehemiah 12:27).

Nehemiah and Ezra then assembled the leaders of Judah to ascend to the top of the wall of the city. They were led in a procession by two large choirs and instrumentalists. They marched around the city of Jerusalem on top of the wall in a boisterous celebration of thanks and praise to God. One group went in one direction led by Ezra. The other group, with Nehemiah following, went in the other direction.

The groups met at the temple area to publicly thank the Lord for all he had done to help and provide for them. Men, women and children “were rejoicing because God had given them great joy” (Nehemiah 12:43).

We are reminded every day of reasons to be unhappy. News of wars, dangerous weather, political scandals, social problems, moral decay, random and meaningless violence, for example, fuel our feelings of anxiety. We know that if our attention stays too long on these the mental and emotional cost will be high.

Nehemiah 12 helps us to look at the dangers of life through God’s perspective. Difficulties are not going to go away. They will always be there. But our faithful father in heaven in not going away either. He has promised he will be with us through whatever hardships we may face. He will be present to help us and sustain us.

We may fall, but he will be there to lift us and hold us. So let’s not forget to keep our eyes on him and give thanks.

Pastor Randy Faulkner

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A Parkinson’s Update

It has been almost a year since I received the diagnosis that I have Parkinson’s Disease. The tremor in my left arm and hand had been becoming more pronounced for several months. So when I was able to see a neurologist in Oklahoma City, his verdict was not surprising to me.

Friends near and far have inquired about how I am doing. This little report is an attempt to answer them. I hope I can give thoughtful answers without complaining. I know, as my neurologist has gently reminded me, that my symptoms could be worse than they are. But the reality is that I am facing a new reality. Part of the new reality is simply brought on by aging; part of it is defined by Parkinson’s.

I’ve been a pastor for over fifty years and that involves public ministry. The embarrassment of conspicuous shaking as I speak is a distraction to me and I can only imagine what it must be like to those who are watching and listening. Is that vanity on my part?

Recently I experienced a really bad “brain freeze” while I was preaching.  The words simply would not come forth! Was that due to the aging process? Did Parkinson’s have something to do with it? Only the Lord knows. But I will keep on preaching and teaching as long as he keeps on providing opportunities.

The Parkinson’s diagnosis influenced our decision to move from Oklahoma to be near our daughter Carrie and her family in Valdosta, Georgia. Connie and I live in a lovely retirement community. Our apartment is comfortable, the food is good, and our neighbors are congenial. We have joined a nearby Baptist church where we worship with our family. We have made new friends in our Sunday School Class.

Medically, I am on my third prescription, The med they call the “gold standard” didn’t work for me. The second med didn’t calm the tremor either. Now I am trying a third drug which works wonders for some people. I’ve been taking it for a month in increasing doses and I am supposed to call the doctor to tell him whether it has made a difference. I don’t know what he may have up his sleeve when I tell him the news that I can’t shake the shakes.

As I write this, I say to myself, “Stop whining Randy! Get on with life! God is good!” I remember what the patriarch Job said, “The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away; may the name of the Lord be praised” (Job 1:21). That’s the attitude I want to have as I learn to deal with the progressive and incurable nature of Parkinson’s. I want my first instincts to be like Job’s: to respond to God in worship, in spite of everything.

For a really good example of a response to a Parkinson’s diagnosis read this article by one of my favorite writers, Philip Yancey.           Philip Yancey’s Story

Pastor Randy Faulkner

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The Shepherd’s Care

One of my favorite parenting memories is of my children reciting the Twenty-third Psalm. When they were very young their bedtime ritual often included kneeling for prayer and reciting the psalm in the venerable King James Version: “The Lord is my Shepherd, I shall not want.” That’s a good memory for an old dad.

I have been meditating on this psalm since I received my diagnosis of Parkinson’s disease a few weeks ago. This little masterpiece of scripture is a favorite of many Bible readers, and for good reason. It is a reminder of the Lord’s tender care of his people through the circumstances of life on earth. It encourages us to hold to the promise of eternal life “in the house of the Lord.”

I am writing these meditations on Psalm 23 during the weeks leading toward the celebration of our Lord’s death and resurrection. As you prepare your heart for Passion Week, I hope this will contribute to your faith and assurance that the Lord is indeed your Shepherd.

“The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not be in want. He makes me lie down in green pastures, he leads me beside quiet waters” (Psalm 23:1-2).

Here is a picture of quietness, contentment and peace. How is this possible in a time of anxiety when trouble reaches us? It is possible because the Shepherd is near. He owns his sheep. He knows his sheep. He calls each one by name, In the catacombs in Rome, there is an epitaph used by the early Christians: “In Christo, in pace;”  (In Christ, in peace). The early believers were comforted by the presence of the Good Shepherd who was with them in death.

At this time in my life, as I face the coming limitations and dependency imposed by Parkinson’s, I am comforted by the assurance of the Lord’s presence. “Never will I leave you. Never will I forsake you,” is the Shepherd’s promise (Hebrews 13:5). “The Lord is near”(Philippians 4:5). “You are with me,” the psalm declares, in life and in death.

Furthermore, the Shepherd provides for his sheep. King David, who wrote the psalm, had been a shepherd in his youth. The Bible records how he protected his father’s sheep from predators, wild animals who threatened the sheep. The shepherd’s “rod and staff” could be used to defend the sheep, as well as to guide them.

The Near Eastern shepherd also provided food and water for the sheep. He would lead his sheep from one green pasture to another. C.H. Spurgeon, in his classic work on the psalms The Treasury of David, applied this to the Christian’s need for spiritual nourishment. He wrote: “What are these ‘green pastures’ but the Scriptures of truth — always fresh, always rich, and never exhausted?” We are fed spiritually when we hear, read, and reflect on God’s Word.

Psalm 23 reminds us how the Shepherd guides. The phrase “he makes me lie down” is not as abrupt and forceful as it sounds in the English language. The original connotation is of gentle leading and setting in a good place. The shepherd guides to a place of rest. He is aware of how his sheep need calm security as they assimilate the food they have received.

Phillip Keller was a sheep herder and pastor. In his book on Psalm 23 he said that the Eastern shepherd would lead his sheep to quiet waters that he himself had prepared by creating stilled pools in flowing streams. According to Keller the sheep would be afraid of rushing water. So the shepherd, ahead of time, would dam the streams with rocks to make sure the sheep had quiet water that they would drink.

All of this imagery pictures the personal care of the shepherd for his sheep. Psalm 23 was written to assure us that the Good Shepherd, Jesus, cares for his own sheep in the same way (John 10:1-15). I do not know all that is ahead for me, but I am relying on the Shepherd’s presence, provision, and guidance.

Pastor Randy Faulkner

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I Shall Not Want

Last week I met with a friend who has been diagnosed with incurable cancer. She has been receiving hospice care. Before we prayed together, her husband, she and I joined hands and recited Psalm 23 as we remembered it from our childhoods. There was no better spiritual therapy for us in that moment.

This is why the 23rd Psalm is a favorite of many people. It is a source of strength for people who are troubled by anxiety, overwhelmed by difficult circumstances, or facing the reality that life is coming to an end.

“The Lord is my shepherd,” the psalm begins. This is personal. This is relational. King David, who wrote the psalm, wrote from his personal knowledge of the Lord. He had been a shepherd boy in his youth, and he knew what it was like to care for sheep. He knew how dependent the sheep were on the shepherd’s care. As king of Israel, he knew he needed the guidance and care of his (“my”) heavenly Shepherd.

“He makes me lie down in green pastures.” The sheep need nourishment, rest and protection. God’s people need spiritual nourishment from the Word and regular times of fellowship with the Lord in prayer. David knew this and his psalms are filled with prayers and praises. “He restores my soul” expresses the healing, renewal and forgiveness we experience when we come to God in transparent faith and honest confession.

“He guides me along the right paths.” I have read that there are animals that have a homing instinct and they are able to find their way back home even over many miles of separation. This is not true of sheep. They have no internal compass, no sense of direction. Sheep can only find the right places if they follow the shepherd. The psalm is teaching us to follow in the steps of Jesus the Good Shepherd.

“I will fear no evil.” When facing the last enemy, death, that lonesome valley will hold no terror for the believer who knows and follows the Shepherd. Even people who do not think of themselves as especially brave, are promised supernatural courage because in that in that dark and lonely place they discover they are not alone. The Lord Jesus himself is with them.

“Surely goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life.” The believer who lives by faith and daily dependency upon God will find that his promises are faithful and true. He takes care of his own sheep, loves them and provides for them. David is describing the personal relationship of the sheep to the Shepherd. All through this psalm we see the personal pronouns “I,” “me,” and “my,” teaching us that the Shepherd wants us to know we are significant to him and that the concerns of our lives are important to him.

“I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.” This assurance of an eternal home with the Lord is the reason the psalm opens with the phrase “I shall not be in want.” I shall not want for provision, guidance and care throughout life. I shall not want for the protection and presence of the Good Shepherd in the hour of death. And after death, I shall not want for the comfort and security of a home with the Lord.

I enjoy singing in the choir at church. We are preparing an anthem based upon Psalm 23, “Shepherd Me, O God,” by Marty Haugen and Mark Hayes. It is beautiful and its message is strong: “Shepherd me O God, beyond my wants, beyond my fears, from death into life.”

One reason this is important to me right now is that just this week I received the unwelcome news from my doctor that I have Parkinson’s Disease. Obviously this means that Connie and I must begin to learn a whole new way to live. To paraphrase Michael J. Fox, I have no choice about whether I have Parkinson’s, but Connie and I have lots of choices about how we respond to it.

I choose to respond by following and trusting my Good Shepherd. His goodness and love have accompanied me for 75 years, and I know he will be a faithful Presence in the major adjustments and limitations that lie ahead. I shall not be in want.

Pastor Randy Faulkner