Medication

1982 or there abouts- Summer time- June or there abouts- Ponce de Leon Mall- St. Augustine Florida- Selling Toy Airplanes- It seems like another lifetime- maybe just a bad dream. Ah, but real it was and there is nothing quite like the pain of an abscessed tooth to burn the time into my memory. Honestly, I don't know if there has ever been another time in my life I have been in more pain- yet needed to function- to perform well in fact. Money was short and I needed to come through- I needed to have a good- no, a great week- selling those silly styrofoam gliders to all the beach combing tourist I could convince their own quest for happiness was only a Toy Airplane purchase away! Still..............

I had to do something about this pain- ANYTHING that would give me some relief!

What about you (and me still for that matter)- What are we doing with our own pain? How are we managing it- the dissappointments- the losses- the failures- the cutting words that have left deep and festering wounds.

Is Tylenol enough? If not Tylenol, how about Alcohol, or Work, or Achievement, or Soap Operas, or Pornography, or Romance Novels, or Prescription Drugs, or Food, or Religion, or ...........................Choose your Medication.

What am I using to escape my Pain?

The way I see it there are 2 kinds of Medication.

Both are really important in their own way.

There is Medication that helps me get through- that helps me manage my pain.

Think of Perkocet (misspelled I think) or Zoloft- neither promises a cure, but both are critical to help us manage pain as we go through a healing process.

Then there is Medication that actually heals.

Think of Antibiotics or Chemotherapy- neither gives you any sort of on the spot relief- in fact the Chemo really makes you "feel" worse for a while- right? And yet these Medications go to the core- they attack the sickness rather than treating the symptoms.

Two Questions

Is my Christianity more about pain management or healing?

How much have I looked to other things to give me some relief- some escape even- from those deep places of hurt in my Heart?

Isaiah 61 Excerpts "The Spirit of the Lord is on Me (Jesus)......to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim freedom for the captives and release from darkness for the prisoners......to comfort all who mourn.......to bestow on them a crown of beauty instead of ashes, the oil of gladness instead of mourning and a garment of praise to replace a spirit of despair.........They will be a planting of the Lord for the display of His Splendor.

Lord Jesus, Friend Jesus, Father God, Great Counselor- Thank You that You have promised healing, that You have promised rest for the weary, that You have promised not to allow more on me than I can bear. I come to You Lord for relief and yes for healing. Strengthen me to go through Your Healing. Give me Courage to go into those painful places in my life. Father God, be a surgeon if need be to cut out all that festers and steals my Life and Joy. All Praise be to You Most High God. Amen