How are you positioned to be used by God?

Up until recently news about the 2023 Asbury Revival, which started in the Hughes Auditorium following a chapel service in early February, was spreading on social media through TikTok and Instagram like wild fire.

It had became a bit of a global phenomenon with major news outlets like the Washington Post reporting on it. It was being lauded by many. But it also copped a fair bit of criticism from around the world, and even from Christian commentators and communities.

But as Carey Nieuwhof asks in a post entitled “5 Thoughts on the Asbury Revival for Pastors” that featured on his blog while the 2023 Asbury Revival was still going – ‘What are most church leaders to do about it?’

The 5 points that Carey shares I think are well worth posting here before I ask an equally pertinent question of my own (or at least I think so), as I feel we should all be asking it of ourselves each and every day.

Be More Curious and Open Than You Are Closed or Critical

We live in a highly cynical age, but if God is indeed moving, this is no time to be cynical. As temporary confusion and uncertainty may be an indicator that God is present and moving.

Don’t Worry About Taking a Position

As Timothy Tennent says;

“It is always better to stand in awe of something than to talk about something.” 

Watch. Wait. Pray. Expect. And see. And be hopeful 🙂

Resist the Temptation to Imitate What’s Going On

Seeing God move is more about positioning than it is about anything else. You can position yourself for what God might want to do, but you can’t force it. You can open yourself, but you don’t know the outcome until it happens.

Don’t Feel Generationally Threatened

Just because something amazing is happening and you’re not a part of it doesn’t mean God isn’t in it. The Holy Spirit is free to move however the Spirit wants.

So… Maybe Watch and Give Thanks? 

When it comes to seeing what God is doing in the next generation, perhaps the best perspective to take as a leader is to have an open heart and an open mind. That posture would benefit the church in many situations, including this one.

To get a broader understanding of what he’s saying read the article for yourself 🙂 

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All of this has got me thinking – ‘How are you (and I) positioned to be used by God?’

Are we doing all that we can to put ourselves in a position to be used by Him? Are we willing and waiting to be used by Him? Are we expecting to be used by Him?

Or are we doing the bare minimum to just get by in this Christian walk?  

According to Rick Warren in a post on pastors.com there are five Biblical requirements for being used by God.

1. Keep your life clean.

The first step to being used by God is always personal examination. When you find someone whom God is using in a great way, they’ve dealt with the personal sin in their lives by confessing it to God. God uses small vessels, plain vessels, and even broken vessels. But he will not use a dirty vessel. Matthew 23:26 says, “Blind Pharisee! First clean the inside of the cup and dish, and then the outside also will be clean” (New International Version).

2. Keep your eyes open.

One of the most misunderstood words in leadership circles is the word vision. We think of vision as predicting the future, but none of us can know the future the way God does. Vision is seeing God at work in your present situation and moving with him. 

It’s about getting in on what God is doing in the world and being a part of it where he has placed you. If your vision isn’t in alignment with what God is doing, you are off-course. As David said, “Keep your eyes open for God, watch for his works; be alert for signs of his presence” Psalm 105:4 (The Message).

3. Keep your heart grateful.

God uses grateful people. Thankfulness is also one of the keys to longevity in ministry. Thankful people endure longer because they focus on God’s provision more than their problems. Doctors refer to gratitude as the healthiest of all emotions because of its physical and psychological benefits.

If you don’t stay grateful, you’ll become cynical. Paul said, “Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord” Romans 12:11 (New International Version).

We need to constantly remind ourselves what a privilege it is to serve Jesus. Never take for granted the things that God does in, through, and around us entirely because of his grace.

4. Keep your purpose firm.

You were planned for God’s pleasure, formed for God’s family, created to become like Christ, shaped for service, and made for a mission. These are the purposes for which God made you!

One of [Rick Warren’s] life verses is Acts 13:36: “David served God’s purpose in his own generation” (Common English Bible). [He] wants to serve God’s purpose for [his] life, and [he] knows you do too.

5. Keep your mind on Jesus.

Meditate on this verse, “Keep your eyes on Jesus, who both began and finished this race we’re in. Study how he did it. Because he never lost sight of where he was headed – he could put up with anything along the way: cross, shame, whatever. And now he’s there, in the place of honor, right alongside God” Hebrews 12:2 (The Message).

God’s purpose for your life is far greater than your problems. Don’t give up when it gets tough. Go to Jesus. Keep your mind on Him!

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How about we each reflect on the above five Biblical requirements and give ourselves a grade for each of the areas. Then thank God for our strengths and identify how we might be able to strengthen our weaknesses.

Also you may like to share this article with your key leaders, and follow it up with a discussion around where you see each other.

Another resource that you could use are aspects of Natural Character Development.

As “One of our greatest obstacles in knowing God is our own lack of self-knowledge… Our unwillingness to know ourselves as we truly are, can stunt our growth in Christ.” (Peter Scazzero – Emotionally Healthy Spirituality)

These are available through Spiramentum Ministries and can help you position yourself to be used by God – as they can help you assess; what you bring to a room (Inspiration), how you use your resources (Effectiveness), and how you connect with Him (Passion) among other things that are important to your Spiritual Growth and Christian journey.

Blessings ’til next time 🙂

The Importance of a Discipleship Strategy

Over the past few months or so if you’ve been following my personal blog (The Life and Times of Perry…), or articles I’ve subsequently posted on Spiramentum Ministries, I’ve been focussing on the ‘Importance of Discipleship‘ and the need to develop our own ‘Spiritual Growth Pathway‘.

Part of the reason for this has been the growing reality that within the Western church we seem to have minimalised the importance of “true” discipleship and turned it into a programme. Spiritual Growth has been heavily focussed in one or two areas, rather than looking at it from a whole of life perspective. 

Tragically, over the past few decades we have seen Sunday attendance continue to decline, discipleship programmes and membership classes have not been getting the results that we were wanting, and the number of people ‘joining’ and serving in the church seems to have also declined.

Add to this reality that many of our congregations are becoming increasingly older and the level of Biblical literacy is sadly lacking, if we are to acknowledge the trends that have been widely circulating over the past few years or so. 

During the Coronavirus pandemic (which we are still limping through) this seems to have been exacerbated and some commentators are saying that the church is a shadow of what it was only a few short years ago. 

There is Good news! 🙂

Post Covid though (if we can really call it that) some things seem to be on the rise – a recent Barna research report (admittedly American based) but I’m sure we can correlate these numbers across the board in many other countries too, shows that almost 3/4’s of people surveyed would like to grow spiritually.

The best (and most surprising news) is that Gen Z and Millennials – people born between 1984 and 2015 – are more likely to believe in a supernatural component to life than their boomer parents and grandparents. With 59% of Gen Z saying that they are more open to spirituality now than before the pandemic. 

So what does this mean?

People are spiritually curious or more open to the supernatural, they just don’t think the church can help 😦

Therefore, as church leaders, pastors, ministers, officers etc. it is absolutely paramount that we develop a discipleship strategy that works in our local faith communities; so that people can learn who they are in Christ and grow in their understanding of the fullness of God.

We need to identify what God is doing in the here and now, and help people see Him at work in and through their lives and ours, and how He wants for all of us to grow into maturity in Christ.

As our “responsibility is to equip God’s people to do his work and build up the church, the body of Christ. This will continue until we all come to such unity in our faith and knowledge of God’s Son that we will be mature in the Lord, measuring up to the full and complete standard of Christ.

Then we will no longer be immature like children. We won’t be tossed and blown about by every wind of new teaching. We will not be influenced when people try to trick us with lies so clever they sound like the truth. Instead, we will speak the truth in love, growing in every way more and more like Christ, who is the head of his body, the church.” Ephesians 4:12-15 (New Living Translation)

The following points have been adapted slightly from an article written by Chuck Lawless on his blog entitled “A Discipleship Strategy that takes on the enemy“.

Chuck writes that he is convinced that a good discipleship strategy is offensive spiritual warfare. He then shares why and how you might want to strengthen your church’s strategy around discipleship:

You see, firstly believers cannot defeat the enemy unless they are wearing the full armor of God. That’s just basic Biblical Knowledge.

Ephesians 6:10-17 says; 

“To end my letter I tell you, be strong in the Lord and in his great power. Wear the full armor of God. Wear God’s armor so that you can fight against the devil’s clever tricks. Our fight is not against people on earth. We are fighting against the rulers and authorities and the powers of this world’s darkness. We are fighting against the spiritual powers of evil in the heavenly places. That is why you need to get God’s full armor. Then on the day of evil, you will be able to stand strong. And when you have finished the whole fight, you will still be standing.

So stand strong with the belt of truth tied around your waist, and on your chest wear the protection of right living. On your feet wear the Good News of peace to help you stand strong. And also use the shield of faith with which you can stop all the burning arrows that come from the Evil One. Accept God’s salvation as your helmet. And take the sword of the Spirit – that sword is the teaching of God.” (Easy-to-Read Version)

Therefore, wearing the armor is both positional and behavioral. For example, we wear the breastplate of righteousness because God gives us His righteousness. Out of that righteousness, though, we must decide to make righteous choices. Wearing the armor cannot be separated from how we live.

We need to know how to wear the full armor of God and this can only be done if people are taught. Despite what many churches seem to imply we don’t learn how to wear the armor of God by osmosis. Somebody must teach us how to wear it and live it out practically. 

For when we don’t teach believers how to wear God’s armor, they will lose spiritual conflicts. That’s inevitable, because unarmed warriors don’t win battles. 

The thing is, no believer is intended to fight these battles alone. If we reach new believers but then don’t immediately walk with them, we set them up for defeat. Any gap between their conversion and our teaching them is an open door for the enemy’s arrows. 

Disciplemakers must be wearing the full armor of God themselves. Believers who live in secret sin or operate by their own power aren’t good disciplers. Biblical discipleship means challenging others to imitate Christ by imitating you (refer to 1 Corinthians 11:1).

 

Discipleship must therefore begin one-on-one. Larger group studies are great – and needed – but they are not enough.

All new believers need a mentor,  guide, or spiritual partner who will walk beside them, teach them, challenge them, and pick them up if the enemy temporarily wins. 

Discipleship is teaching believers to wear the armor as they, too, evangelize others. Part of wearing the armor is speaking the gospel of peace to others. That means discipleship and evangelism can’t be separated. Each part of the Great Commission should continually feed the other.  

This kind of discipleship doesn’t happen by accident. That is, we must have a strategy to accomplish our goals. The enemy, who is a schemer, often wins because he operates with more strategy than our churches do. Congregations that function only from Sunday to Sunday don’t usually threaten the enemy.

Discipleship that takes on the enemy can begin in your church TODAY! Take this challenge: begin investing in one newer believer and one longer-term believer. Help each other wear the full armor of God and take on the enemy for God’s glory.

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If you’d like some assistance with helping you and your people to thrive in life, keeping you on track and focussed, and experience life in all its fullness – then maybe Spiramentum Ministries can help!

We would love to help create a spiritual growth pathway, or discipleship strategy with you – so that you can be all that God has called you to be.

Utilising Natural Character Development, we can assist people to clarify where they are at in their Christian journey, helping them in setting a better course for their life, and enabling them to experience life in all its fullness.

Blessings ’til next time 🙂

Children Are Important

This year Annette & I get to officially celebrate Grandparents Day* on Sunday 1st of October, as yesterday (8/3/2023) Christina & Jonny welcomed wee Jack Perry Woods into this world 🙂

Mum and bubs are doing really well all things considered, and dad is absolutely besotted and overwhelmed with joy for this little fella (as is Nana Net who is currently staying down in Invercargill).

From the beginning of God’s Word to the end of it, God speaks about the importance and worth of children, and because children are important to God, they should be extremely important to us and we should value them.

According to Psalm 127:3 “Children are a gift from the Lord. The children born to us are our special reward.” (New Life Version)

And Jesus had to remind the disciples to “Let the little children come to [Him], and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these.” Matthew 19:14 (New International Version)

Last weekend many churches around Aotearoa (New Zealand) celebrated Children’s Day with a variety of children’s activities, games and stories.

In part this is so that we can pass on our knowledge of God and let the next generation know about the glorious deeds of the Lord, about His mighty power, wonders and works (refer to Psalm 78:4-8).

For we are each supposed to think about His marvelous glory and mighty miracles, and talk about His fearsome deeds. Telling others how great He is.

And this should be our motivation when we gather to celebrate and sing about His matchless mercy and power to save us (refer to Psalm 145:4-7).

The thing is, in some regions the celebrations aimed at/for children continue for at least a couple of weeks as various events occur to help raise the importance of our children, and the responsibilities that we have as parents and carers to those that are entrusted to us.

Now I know for certain that both Christina and Jonny want to do all they can to care for and protect their newborn baby, and ensure that he is brought up in the knowledge of who God is, and what He has done not only in their lives, but the generations of people before them – But they’ll need support and encouragement from their church family to do this, as it takes a village to raise a child.

We need to learn, think and act generationally if we are ever to see the purposes of God fulfilled. Afterall His design is for the generations to be connected, serving together and using their various strengths to impact the world for Christ.

So, may this be a reminder for us all that as we approach another day, another weekend, another Sunday – that we too remember how important children are.

That they are indeed a gift!

Let us do all we can to enable the little children to learn about Jesus, for we have a responsibility to pass on our knowledge of God to the generations that follow. Because it won’t happen through osmosis, it is not the job of professional clergy folk, we all have a part to play and it is definitely worth the effort.

Blessings ’til next time 🙂

* Grandparents Day is a day that celebrates all the joy and value that Grandparents bring to the lives of their children’s children.

Health Update #12 – Time out in Rivendell

Last week, I had the opportunity to take some time out on my respite day to enjoy the sights and sounds of Rivendell (Kaitoke Regional Park).

As the sound of the babbling river below flowed by and the cicadas echoed loudly in my ears, I paused to contemplate the past few months of my health journey and where things are at for me personally.

Meanwhile, the occasional tourist took photo opportunities under the stunning archway and amongst the beautiful backdrop of the beech forest, which of course was the film set for the Lord of the Rings.
(See image below)

To say that it has been an easy ride would be a gross exaggeration, as we’ve had quite an eventful couple of months. Firstly, due to Covid catching up with us (which I wrote about here) as well as various activities and outings that Annette & I have been a part of.

Many of which have been encouraging and enjoyable, some (only a few thankfully) – not so much! However, even the enjoyable ones have highlighted the overall deterioration of my physical capabilities to a degree, especially when it comes to going on walks.

One recent example is a recent trip to Mangamaire to see New Zealand’s Premium Sunflower Field near Pahiatua. It appealed to me obviously because of the connection to the sunflower being the international symbol of Scleroderma.

Also because as a family unit (just the three of us) we hadn’t really done anything for quite some time as our social calendars hadn’t exactly lined up 🙂 

So we took a drive up to Levin stopping off for a late morning tea at the Salt and Pepper cafe, before heading over the hill to the other side of the Tararua Ranges.

Once at Mangamaire Sunflower Field we spent a good hour or so, along with heaps of other people exploring the field and taking heaps of photos of the surroundings.

Before resting up for a while enjoying the feel of the heat of the sun on our backs and eating our packed lunches. 

Afterwards we stopped off to visit some friends on the way back down to Wellington which was just fabulous, and had some real fruit ice-cream 🙂

By the time I got home I was spent for the rest of the evening and I was feeling a tad lethargic for the whole of the next day too.

People with this rare autoimmune disease need to be careful that they don’t overdo it and even small things, like taking a stroll around a field can take a huge toll on the body.

Below is a beautiful picture of the three of us enjoying the stunning day that we experienced at the field. The blooming season is over for now – but we will definitely put it on our must do list for next season.

Another example of overdoing it was our recent trip to Taupo to celebrate 30 years of marriage – Annette & I went for a couple of walks while we were there, one around part of the lake on the first night, followed by a lovely late morning stroll the following day around the Craters of the Moon.

For the most part, both of these walks were on the flat – but by the second day, Annette could definitely tell that I wasn’t able to do anymore walking, especially after our visit to Huka Falls – it was as if every part of me ached. She didn’t even allow me to do any of the driving on our trip home as I’d simply overdone it.

Now, for someone who has been reasonably active most of my life, this can be a bit hard to fathom. It is not like either of these walks were overly long or anything.

But they obviously had an impact on me to some degree or another, as it took a few days to get over the weekend 😞

This is one of the major drawbacks of having Scleroderma and Interstitial Lung Disease as the body just can’t do what it used to do.

The mind may be willing and to a degree the body may agree with you, at least for a little while – but then the body simply says you’re done, with very little warning.

Talk about frustrating – sufferers of this invisible disability are encouraged to keep their exercise up, but at times even going for an extended walk can be a drain on one’s energy levels, that lasts for a few days.

Below is a picture of the Craters of the Moon – we certainly live in one of the most beautiful countries in the world, if not arguably the most beautiful. I guess that’s why Aotearoa used to have the colloquial name ‘God’s Zone’.

On a positive side our respiratory specialist is happy with the progress that I’m making after the last lot of Rituximab infusions. It would appear that we had achieved some kind of equilibrium and he reckons that the four monthly time frame between infusions should be ideal going forward.

Thankfully, I have almost finished being weaned off of Prednisone and all going well by the end of March I should be off it completely. However, it has been interesting how the body responds to even a 1mg drop.

I’ve experienced the odd mishap and at times feel quite lethargic for about the first week. It’s as if the body is trying to encourage me to stay on it, but I’ve persevered and now we are almost done.   

We have had to continually assess where I’m at with regard to my ability to do some other stuff throughout, as I’m finding some menial things are becoming increasingly difficult.

It’s a bit of a worry when I have to hand over my drink bottle to someone else to take the twist top off of it, or ask my wife or daughter to take the tab off of the milk. 

In the next little while we’ll be looking at what aides I may need to acquire to help prolong my energy levels as much as we can.

This will include the likes of getting a mobility scooter in due course for longer outings and when I need to go up and down hills (which in the Wellington region there are plenty). This will enable me to take the dog out for longer walks in our area than a few circuits around the cul-de-sac.

There is a part of me that says that I’m not ready for that and live in a sense of denial that I need stuff to help my situation.

But the past few months have shown that even though I’m increasingly looking better on the outside – there is still a war going on in my insides that will never end and some days it is a struggle just to get out of bed.

But life goes on and I’ll keep on fighting this and raising awareness, making sure that I’m able to contribute to the mission and ministry that God has called me to. Afterall they don’t call us Scleroderma Warriors for nothing eh!

Blessings ’til next time 🙂   

Spiritual Breathing

Over the past few months or so I’ve been exploring this theme of breath / breathing. While I was revisiting some of the notes that I’ve put in various books etc. that I’ve read over the past little while, I came across the following from Kyle Idleman’s book ‘Not a Fan‘ which I think will help people as they explore ‘Spiritual Breathing‘.

He writes; “The teaching of Bill Bright helped me learn to become a follower who is filled with the Spirit. He teaches a spiritual exercise called “Spiritual Breathing.” The basic idea is that you live with a moment by moment awareness of the Spirit until walking in the Spirit becomes as natural – as habitual – as breathing. It’s just part of who you are.

Here’s how it works: the moment you become aware of sin in your life you exhale.

When you exhale, you breathe out and repent of your sin. Repentance becomes a natural response and clears out space in our hearts for the Spirit to fill us. So the moment you are prideful, jealous, lustful, harsh, selfish, dishonest, impatient, you exhale and repent of your sin.

The only way to be filled with the Spirit is to empty myself of me. When I empty me of me, it provides space for the Holy Spirit to fill me.

Before you can be filled you must first be emptied. You can’t hold up your glass to be filled if it’s already full.

When the Holy Spirit moves in and takes up residence, then you should constantly be moving yourself out. And, slowly, you find that your pride, your impatience, your selfishness, your lust, and whatever else is bottled inside you is carried out the door. Because if you are being filled with Him there won’t be as much room for you. So exhale and breathe out the clutter and darkness of you to make room to be filled with the Spirit.

And then you inhale. When you inhale you breathe in and pray to be filled with the Spirit and you surrender control over to Him. 

For me, (Kyle writes) one of the most difficult parts of being filled is being still. … Sometimes it is hard work to pray “fill me with your Spirit” and then be still.”

The thing is, the Holy Spirit can’t be caught, He is received! And as we practice this discipline of spiritual breathing it can teach us to keep in step with Him. The longer we practice it, the more natural it becomes.

The trouble is, all too often we take breathing for granted, both physically and spiritually.

This is something that I’ve had to get my head around, as my health condition (Scleroderma with Interstitial Lung Disease) has definitely caused me to monitor my breathing. I’m having to constantly check my oxygen levels on a daily basis to look for any signs of potential deterioration in my lung capacity.

It has also had me keeping a close eye on my spiritual disciplines: reading my Bible, doing my daily devotions, spending time in prayer, and allowing myself times to focus on resting in Him; through being still and breathing.

In the past I’ve always tended to be one of those guys that is so busy doing the work of God that I’d often neglect the importance of being with God.

And I know that I’m not the only one 🙂

We all have this tendency (especially within the western church) to put our confidence in our own efforts, striving to do things for God (acts of service, programme, mission & ministry etc.) instead of relying on the Holy Spirit’s power to do only what He can do in and through our lives and resting in Him. Exhaling and inhaling!

Now don’t get me wrong, I’m not saying mission and ministry are bad or anything! Mission and ministry are my passion and it is likely yours, too. But when it is done out of our own strength, for our own validation, or for our own prideful ego it is not God-honoring. It’s as if “we wear our busyness like a badge of honor, like an identity or proof of worthiness.”

But maybe we’ve got it wrong – maybe we need to return to our first love, like the church in Ephesus (refer to Revelation 2:1-7) and exhale all of ‘our stuff‘, and inhale the ‘Breath of life‘.

I recently read that “It’s possible to look like you’re serving Jesus on the outside while on the inside you are far from Him.”

I get a sense that today many Christian organisations and churches are operating out of this kind of mindset.

They have become more and more reliant on what they bring to the table through their plans, strategies, methodologies etc. that God seems to be being pushed out of their everyday activities.

So, what are you doing to ensure that you are breathing effectively?
Are you exhaling all the stuff that you need to let go of?
Are you inhaling what it is that the Spirit is leading you into?
Do you allow the time necessary to fully contemplate this?
Or are you rushing to the next thing that is running through your mind?

I pray that over the next few weeks you will allow yourself time to be still. To exhale and then inhale as often as you need to – so that God through His Holy Spirit can do His work in and through you to influence and impact the lives of those that He puts in your path for His glory.

May the following piece from the International Staff Band help you in being still, as they play Andrew Blyth’s ‘Still’ @ the Kettering Citadel Corps (November 2019)

Shall we pray, “Holy Spirit, breathe into our hearts and let us inhale the tenderness of the Father. Breathe upon the Church, so that she may spread the Gospel with joy. Breathe upon the world the fresh restoration of hope.” Amen (Pope Francis)

Blessings ’til next time 🙂

International Rare Disease Day

Today is International Rare Disease Day, the day in which Rare Disorders NZ are kicking off the very first Rare Disorders awareness month within New Zealand – Calling on Aotearoa to Glow up and Show up for Rare to show support for the 6% of the population living with a rare disorder.

During the month of March, they will be putting a spotlight on rare disorders and the issues important to the rare disorder community.

There are a number of ways that you too can get involved:

• Book a fun night with your friends at the Paintvine event in Wellington
• Make your Friday drinks memorable by trying some truly unique brews at the Rare Beer Challenge in Wellington & Auckland
• Rally your local school, community groups, workplace, as well as family and friends to organise a fundraising event to show their support for rare throughout the month of March. (Check out their helpful guides for inspiration on ways to #GlowUpShowUp)
• Attend or organise a fun run in your area? Don some high-vis to show your support for rare and raise funds for Rare Disorders NZ
• Donate to Rare Disorders NZ through their Givealittle page
• Sharing your stories about living with a rare disease or disorder that affects your day-to-day life
• Spread awareness and show support on social media by using the following hashtags

#GlowUpShowUp       #DoRightByRare       #RareDisordersMonth

Together we can bring rare disorders out of the darkness, and into the light.

What are the issues facing people living with a rare disorder in Aotearoa?

Unlike most OECD countries, New Zealand currently does not have a national strategy for rare disorders.

The New Zealand health, social and education systems offer no pathways to support those affected by rare disorders.

There are no set guidelines for health professionals to refer to when a condition is difficult to diagnose, or how to best support a patient with a rare condition.

There is no rare disorder data registry to find the number of others affected by a condition, in fact not even an official definition of what is considered rare.

This means people living with a rare disorder are essentially invisible in the health, social and education systems and face unnecessary hurdles trying to access the support and care they need for a decent quality of life.

According to the 2021 Voice of Rare Disorders Survey, over half of people living with a rare disorder took longer than 1 year to get a diagnosis, and for one in five the time taken to get a diagnosis was over 10 years.

Meanwhile, 55% of respondents indicated their disorder impacted a lot on their health and everyday life, and 32% required more than 2 hours per day for illness-related daily tasks.

It’s not rare to have a rare disorder, in New Zealand, more than 300,000 people live with one of 6,000+ rare disorders – That’s similar to the population of a big city like Wellington.

In 2022 the NZ government committed to developing a Rare Disease strategy going forward – So, watch this space as they work to help those that desperately need assistance in one form or another.

Over the past month around the world to help recognise International Rare Disease Awareness Month, news outlets have been running articles about people affected by rare diseases – One such article from the BBC featured Selena Gomez, who has been praised for speaking up on the effects of lupus (an incurable autoimmune disease where the body’s immune system becomes hyperactive and attacks normal tissue) and body-shaming.

You can read the article here.

Over the coming month I’ll be sharing stories of other New Zealanders who have to work through the challenges of living with a rare disease or disorder, as a way in helping to raise the awareness of what we have to live with on a daily basis. You can read about my health journey here.

So the question is – What will you do to raise awareness and how will you Glow Up and Show Up for Rare?