Life suddenly changed! Two weeks ago, I started feeling like I had the flu, within hours I was doubled over with pain; the most intense pain I have ever experienced. After a few hours of emergency abdominal surgery, I emerged with a foot of my colon removed but in much better shape. I spent a week in the hospital and have been home for a week recovering. The recovery is slow but steady. I hope to be back to normal by the first of the year.
I am very thankful for my doctor and other medical personnel, friends and family who prayed for me, sent flowers and cards, and visited me while I was in the hospital. Most of all I am thankful for a husband who would not leave my side while in was in the hospital. Since I have been home, he has attended to my every need, including breakfast in bed. I could get spoiled!
Every aspect of the ministry came to a halt for the last two weeks. Ed is now back at his administrative work and I am doing some work preparing for future classes and projects. We hope to have a limited counseling schedule soon and be back to a normal routine by January 4th.
I am reminded of the physical example of a deeper emotional and spiritual analogy that relates to my surgery. After I got to the emergency room, they gave me some painkiller and did a CAT scan, then told me about my diagnosis. After I was out of pain, I could have chosen to continue to medicate the pain, rather than go through more pain to take out the toxins and repair my colon. I would have died if I had not had the surgery. I was willing to endure the pain of surgery and the long recovery to stay alive.
Many times the same problem occurs spiritually and/or emotionally. We have a weak spot and it begins to fill with harmful ideas or thinking until our whole system is not healthy. To get well, we have someone, who can see inside of us, to help us clean out the damaging beliefs and thoughts. The process of healing may take weeks or months, but we will have a new quality of life when it is finished.
Without this process, most of us will spend years medicating the pain. Some of us will use drugs or alcohol, but many of us will use less obvious means . . . . acquiring money or stuff, striving for praise through our performance, seeking admiration of our looks or personality. The less obvious and more palatable means still cover the pain instead of addressing it. These painful issues become the basis of personal conflicts, especially in marriage. Much of what we do at Living Well is to help people find the toxins and connect with the Holy Spirit to clean, repair, and heal from the inside out.
