Joy Doesn’t Take a Sick Day

Claire Black: Welcome to True Girl, a podcast for girls and their moms. Together, we’ll explore God’s truth for us, one drive at a time.Buckle up!You’re about to grow closer to each other and closer to Jesus!

Welcome back to the True Girl podcast, where we’re looking at a map to joy. Dannah Gresh and Staci Rudolph are exploring Psalm 30, one verse at a time. Have you started memorizing it yet? You can tackle the whole chapter or just memorize the verses we’ll study in this season, which are Psalm 30, verses 1–5. Let me read them to you: 

I will exalt you, Lord, for you rescued me.
   You refused to let my enemies triumph over me.
O Lord my God, I cried to you for help,
   and you restored my health.

You brought me up from the grave, O Lord.
    You kept me from falling into the pit of death.
Sing to the Lord, all you godly ones!
   Praise his holy name.

For his anger lasts only a moment,
   but his favor lasts a lifetime!
Weeping may last through the night,
   but joy comes with the morning.”

Let’s take a moment to review something we learned in the last episode. Do you remember what the letters in the word J.O.Y. stand for? The J is for “Jesus.” O stands for “Overcomes.” And Y is for the words “For YOU”—Jesus Overcomes for You! This acronym reminds us that joy isn’t pretending to be happy. It’s knowing Jesus is with you, and He’s in control of everything—even on your worst days. 

I don’t know about you, but some of my worst days were the ones when I had to skip school and keep a thermometer nearby. Can you relate? Yeah, we’ve all had to take a sick day. But guess what? Joy doesn’t take a sick day.Even when you’re not feeling great, Jesus is still nearby and at work on your behalf.

Let’s catch up with Dannah Gresh and Staci Rudolph. They’re on the Gresh farm, getting ready to take their Holy Girl Walk—that’s what Dannah calls it when she walks and memorizes Bible verses! Today, they’ll memorize Psalm 30, verse 2.

Frankie and Moosie—their canine companions—are ready to tag along beside them. But there’s someone else who looks like he needs a walk. Truett the horse hasn’t come out of his stall yet. He’s been a little quiet lately—still feeling the loss of his best buddy, Trigg. Let’s hope today’s walk brings some comfort and joy to them all.

Here’s episode 2 of season 18. The title is “Joy Doesn’t Take a Sick Day.”

Staci Rudolph: Wow, it’s so quiet out here in the barn today. Peaceful . . . but kinda heavy, too.

Dannah Gresh: Yeah. It’s been that way ever since we lost Trigg. Look over there. [A horse snorts gently.]

Staci: Oh, no. Poor Truett. He’s just standing there looking into Trigg’s stall.

Dannah: He does that a lot now. Just stands there, like he’s waiting for Trigg to come back. He hasn’t gone out to pasture since it happened.

Staci: What did happen, Dannah?

Dannah: Trigg slipped on some ice this winter and got hurt really badly—and sadly, his leg was beyond repair. We tried everything we could to save him, but . . . we just couldn’t.

And now, I don’t know, I feel like I need to save Truett. He should be better by now, but he’s not. He doesn’t seem to want to eat much and he hasn’t been out to pasture yet.

Staci: Aw, I’m sorry Dannah. Sometimes when someone we love is hurting, we kind of think it’s our job to fix it. 

Hey, I’ve got an idea! What if we bring him on our Holy Girl Walk today?

Dannah: Alright. Let’s give it a try. I’ll grab his halter. 

Come on, buddy. Let’s go for a walk.

Staci: His head’s still down, but he’s coming. Man, he just looks so sad!

Dannah: Yeah, it’s hard, but ya know, even though Truett is a horse, he’s doing something really healthy. This is a good lesson for humans here. You see, grief is actually a healthy emotion. It means your heart is telling the truth. You’re recognizing that something beautiful was lost, and that it mattered. That’s a really good thing to experience, even if it’s difficult. You don’t have to rush past grief or pretend it’s not happening. 

Staci: Do you think he’ll ever be happy again?

Dannah: Oh, I’m sure of it. You see, He was really sad when I got him fourteen years ago. He’d been left out in a pasture and neglected for a really long time. Do you remember that?

Staci: Yeah, he was the one who was super sick and scabby when you first got him, right?

Dannah: Exactly. When I showed up to meet him, he looked terrible. His head hung low just like this. His body was covered in scabs, and he had big patches of missing hair. But something in me just knew . . . he was mine. He was neglected and needed food, love, and a lot of care, but he was going to be okay.

Staci: Oh, I’ve been there with Frankie before. Right, girl? She was really sick with pneumonia and needed lots and lots of extra love and care!

Dannah: Oh, I remember. You texted me asking me to pray for her.

Staci: Even when she was a mess, even when it was hard, I wanted to help her heal. I missed sleep, missed meals. I was zoned in on her need.

Dannah: Oh, I get it. When Truett was sick, there was one day when I was working on his skin, and I just started crying—not because it was hard, but because I loved him so much and wanted him to be whole.

And in that moment, I felt like God was showing me something about His love for us—how He sees us when we’re broken and hurting. He doesn’t walk away. He stays. He heals. He loves us through it. He is zoned in on us when we’re not well.

Staci: Hey, that reminds me of our verse today. Psalm 30:2. Dannah, I wrote the first letter of each word on this card to help me memorize it. I’ve been practicing all morning. Let’s see . . . “O-L-M-G, O Lord my God; I-C-T-Y-F-H, I cried to you for help; A-Y-R-M-H, and you restored my health.”

Hey, I got it!

Dannah: Well done!

Staci: I love that verse. “I cried to you for help, and you healed me.” You know what I love about it?

Dannah: What?

Staci: It doesn’t say we have to pray perfectly or say all the right words. It just says we can cry out. That’s it. Just call out, like, “God! Help!”

Dannah: Exactly. When we’re sick, we don’t usually feel like much more than, “God, help!” And that’s okay.

Or when someone we love is hurting, we can always cry out to Jesus for them. He is a great healer.

Staci: Yeah, Jesus’ life on earth was marked by healing. In fact, the Bible tells us about more than thirty specific and different people Jesus healed. Some were blind, some couldn’t walk, some had fevers, and some were even raised from the dead! The Bible tells us there were a whole lot more. Jesus probably healed hundreds—maybe even thousands of people.

Dannah: In fact, that reminds me of one. We can read it in Matthew. I think it’s chapter 15, but I don’t have my Bible in my hands right now.

Staci: Yeah, ya got your hands full with that steed of yours!

Dannah: Right? But I’ll tell you what happens. A woman came to Jesus and begged Him to heal her daughter. She just would not accept no for an answer.

Staci: Did Jesus help her?

Dannah: He did. Jesus healed her daughter. There’s this interesting little moment in the story where Jesus calls healing: “the children’s bread.”

Staci: Wait, like . . . bread? As in toast?

Dannah: Not exactly. But it’s this picture of how a loving parent always makes sure their child has food to eat. And in the same way, God loves to provide healing for His children.

Staci: Wow. So just like a mom wouldn’t forget to feed her kids, God doesn’t forget to care for us when we’re sick.

Dannah: Exactly. Healing is something close to His heart. Sometimes it comes fast—like that woman’s daughter who was healed instantly. And sometimes it takes time. Like one summer when I was twelve, I had meningitis—I got a bacteria or virus in my brain, Staci. My brain! And well, let’s just say, I had the worst headache of my life! I was in the hospital for a few days and then in my bed for the better part of a whole, entire summer. But with rest and medicine and time, God slowly healed me.

Staci: Okay, but I have a question.

Dannah: Go for it.

Staci: Do you think God always heals us when we cry out to Him?

Dannah: Well, the honest answer is . . . no. He doesn’t always heal us the way we hope or expect. If He did, no one would ever die and go to heaven to be with Him. So, He doesn’t always heal physically. But He does always help us.

Staci: That’s a really important difference.

Dannah: It is. The Bible—in 2 Corinthians chapter 12—teaches us about the special spiritual gifts God gives His people. These are things that are abilities empowered by God’s Spirit. Most of them are singular gifts. But there’s one gift that’s actually plural: gifts of healing.

That means there are lots of ways God brings healing.

Sometimes, the healing comes through someone with the gift of faith, who believes and prays that God can heal—and He does!

Staci: Did someone have faith for you to get well when you were sick, Dannah?

Dannah: Lots of people. No one had more faith than my mom!

But sometimes, a different kind of healing shows up through someone with the gift of mercy—like a friend who just sits next to you and cries with you so you don’t feel alone when you are sick.

Staci: Man, that sounds like a mom, too! When I was sick as a little girl, my mom would watch cartoons with me. I know she didn’t love cartoons, but she knew they were a little spark of fun during a time I was feeling pretty awful. We’d laugh together and that would actually make me feel a bit better!

Dannah: Moms do have a special way of being with us when we’re sick.

And sometimes, it’s the gift of helping—like someone who brings over chicken noodle soup, or helps clean the house, or takes your little brother out for ice cream to give your family a little break when they’re sick. That’s a kind of healing, too. 

Even when the sickness is too big to fix, God still sends help, sometimes through other people. Those people are nudged or empowered through God’s Holy Spirit—who the Bible calls the Helper.. 

Staci: Okay, so God helps us or heals us when we are sick, but joy? How’s that work when you’re sick?

Dannah: Well, there’s a Bible verse I’ve memorized because it’s like one of those map to joy verses, like Psalm 30. It’s James 1:2–4. Listen to this:

Dear brothers and sisters, when troubles of any kind come your way, consider it an opportunity for great JOY. For you know that when your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow. So let it grow, for when your endurance is fully developed, you will be perfect and complete, needing nothing.

Staci: So, when troubles of any kind come my way—including being sick—it’s an opportunity for joy? 

Dannah: Precisely!

Remember: JOY stands for Jesus Overcomes for YOU! It’s the confidence that God is in control, even when the world seems wrong.

Staci: Or your stomach’s upset, or you’re coughin’ up a lung!

Dannah: Yes.

One way we can express joy is by being grateful even when we are sick. Tell God, “This is hard and I don’t like it, but please help me to remember that You are here and You are in control. Thank You for what You are up to. I cannot wait to see what it is!”

Staci: Oh, I actually heard the coolest story about that. There was this sick nine-year-old boy. He was struggling to understand why God would make him stay inside all summer rather than play his beloved baseball. 

Dannah: Sounds like my sick summer!

Staci: Yes! This was his “worst-ever” sickness. At the time, it was truly devastating. But during his illness, his dad handed the boy a guitar to give him something to do. That was the musical beginning of a well-known worship leader: Chris Tomlin! 

Dannah: Oh, wow! What does he sing? I’m terrible at remembering artists’ names!

Staci: [singing] “How great is our God . . .sing with me . . . how great is our God.”

Dannah joins: “And all will sing how great, how great is our God!”

Dannah: Oh, I love that song, Staci!

Staci: God knew what He was doing when he allowed little Chris Tomlin to have a sick summer. But the musical artist He was making would not be able to see it for many years.

Dannah: That’s amazing, Staci! Wow!

No matter how bad things may seem, you can be sure that God is working to make you perfect and complete.

Staci: So, what you’re saying is this: Jesus doesn’t take sick days!

Dannah: Oh, that’s good! Jesus does NOT take sick days! He’s always with us. Always working. Always helping.

Staci: So that means . . . Joy doesn’t take sick days!

Dannah: That’s right. Real joy is the presence of Jesus, and He is always with us.

Staci: Hey, look at Truett. His head’s not hanging so low!

Dannah: You’re right. And . . . is he actually pulling toward the grass? 

Staci: Looks like someone’s gettin’ his appetite back. Or maybe, he just wants to follow Frankie?

Dannah: He probably thinks she’s a very oddly-shaped horse.

Staci: I mean, she’s got the size!

Claire: True Girl, when you’re sick, it’s okay to rest . . . and it’s okay to feel sad, too. But don’t forget, you can always cry out to God, just like it says in Psalm 30:2: “O Lord my God, I cried to you for help, and you healed me.” This verse is something you can pray when you’re not feeling well, and that’s why memorizing it is so helpful! We hope you’ll join us in learning the second verse of Psalm 30 this week. And remember: joy doesn’t take a sick day, and neither does Jesus.

Another thing you can do to prepare for hard days is learn to study God’s Word. We’ve got a whole weekend planned to help with that—the True Girl Pop-Up Party! There’ll be four of them this summer in: Pennsylvania, California, Texas, or Wisconsin. These weekends are a great way for you and your mom to have fun and learn why the Bible matters in everyday life.

Each party starts Friday night with a worship event led by Staci Rudolph. Then, Saturday morning, dig into God’s Word with a Bible study workshop taught by Dannah Gresh and Shani McKenzie. Want even more? Each location includes an optional Saturday afternoon add-on—like a visit to the animals on Dannah’s farm in Pennsylvania!

Space is limited, but we’d love for you to be part of one of these four weekends. So, talk to your mom about it, and the sooner she can sign you up, the better! Learn more and grab your tickets at MyTrueGirl.com. Just go to where it says “Get Tickets” and click on “Pop-Up Party Weekend.”

Alright, what do fainting goats and Psalm 30, verse 3 have in common? Find out when you come back next week!

The True Girl podcast is produced by Revive Our Hearts, calling women of all ages to freedom, fullness, and fruitfulness in Christ!

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