Physician, Heal Thyself

Last week I encountered a coughing, sneezing, and wheezing Apple Store tech rep who was fixing my dead iPhone. He obviously was ill...retailers are not known for their generous sick day get paid policies. In order to get paid, I am sure that he has to show up.

But, he planted the seeds that got me sick. And, I am a customer who now has a considerably less favorable feeling about the store and probably subconsciously will not want to go back there anytime soon. Just like when you get food poisoning off of a burrito. It takes a while before it gets back in the food rotation. It wasn't only the Apple employee's fault. I was pushing myself at work, cutting calories, shoveling a lot of snow, not getting enough sleep, and consuming too much caffeine, too. All factors in my demise. I was downloading the Cold App by my behavior.

As a public school professional, I am allocated one paid sick day a month. Here is the kicker. In 20 years working, I have only used four days. In fact, today I didn't remember the process for calling in sick. School counselors don't gets subs.

But, I decided to shut down today and sleep. I think the body ratchets up its pleas for recuperative time. Ignore the initial indications--like I did--and a more serious response is issued. Maybe it is my maturity, maybe it is just old age, but I just didn't have it in me to fight it out ill today at work. The world can continue without me. I also did not want to get my co-workers and students sick.

Illness is God's way of knocking on the door of our lives and informing us of many lessons. Ye are mortal, frail, not as in control as you think, not as important as you believe, and death--sooner or later--will issue you into my presence. If we were always healthy, wealthy, and wise until God brought us to judgment by pulling the plug and vaporizing us--where we experienced no pain, premonition or warning--but just waited for the day unawares, we would first live in great fear but also unprepared for that day, having no experiences that enlightened us to our ultimate descent. Illnesses motivate us to find cures.

In thinking about the verse where the townie Nazarenes' get up in Jesus's face and basically ask him "Who in the hell do you think you are? Now you are some big shot in Capernaum and elsewhere. You too good for us now? Show us what you got, pal" Jesus reads their small minds and summarizes essentially they are saying to Him. "Physician, heal thyself." Like, what makes you so special dude?

When Jesus took on humanity He made Himself subject to the vagaries of the flesh, and yet was without sin. He put himself in a position to experience pain, suffering, and agony willingly and for our ultimate healing. And, to top it off, He was criticized and then ultimately killed for doing so. Talk about thankless...being thankless is the most dangerous disease a soul can contract.

I bet Jesus got colds....

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Shake the Dust: Anis Mojgani

Pslam 90:2 "Before the mountains were brought forth, or ever thou hadst formed the earth and the world, even from everlasting to everlasting, thou art God." I am not real certain where Anis Mojgani comes from belief-wise. Cats like him tend to be synchrestic spiritually rather than Christ-centered. Yet, this poem captures the spirit of Jesus. What this poem also needs is grace....we shake off sin and mortality and take on Christ and immortality. This is for the fat girls This is for the little brothers For the former prom queen And for the milk crate ball players This is for the school yard wimps And the childhood bullies that tormented them Shake the dust. This is for the benches and the people sitting upon them. This is for the bus drivers driving a million broken hymns And for the men who have to hold down 3 jobs, Simply to hold up their children. For the nighttime schoolers And for the midnight bike riders trying to fly Shake the dust. For the two year olds who cann
Read more

White Shoes, White Stones

Rev 2:17 He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith to the churches. To him that overcometh, to him will I give of the hidden manna, and I will give him a white stone, and upon the stone a new name written, which no one knoweth but he that receiveth it. (ASV) With the white stone mentioned above in the Scripture verse, "And will give him a white stone" it is "Supposed that by the white stone is meant pardon or acquittance, and the evidence of it; and that there is an allusion here to the custom observed by judges in ancient times, who were accustomed to give their suffrages by white and black pebbles; those who gave the former were for absolving the culprit, those who gave the latter were for his condemnation." (Clarke) What has brought about this essay was my purchasing the other day of some very white and new Nike jogging shoes. My old pair of Nike's have been worn down. I was developing serious pain in my feet which is a solid sign that it is t
Read more

Going Rogue: Dare, Risk, Dream

Image
I picked up a bumper sticker at a Pub recently from the Rogue Brewery . On it there are the words: DARE, RISK, DREAM. Typically, the word Rogue is a negative term. I will let you decide if Sarah Palin and her book has made the word less or more so. Initially, I taped the bumper sticker to my computer lap top with the backing still on it in case I wanted to remove it. Just a second ago, I committed fully, and pulled the backing off and affixed it to my Dell. No turning back. Is that not an illustration of how to accomplish great things? We have to stick and commit. If we go taping ourselves to the backs of things, it leads to easier removal but also to tepid efforts. Now, if I take this bumper sticker off the back of my lap top it is going to be a mess...I am all in. Consequences be damned. My summer vacation officially began today at noon (why else would I be blogging at 3:26 am?) and my creed for the summer is DARE, RISK, DREAM. A Kerouac quote to light the fireworks... "Great th
Read more