P119C – Day 127
Gentle Reader,
Today’s Verse:
“Therefore I love Your commandments
More than gold, yes, than fine gold!”- Psalm 119:127
Point to Ponder:
Earlier this morning I went to see the doctor about a mole that has become suspicious looking. Like most people, my mind immediately jumped to the worst possible conclusion: I have cancer. I’m going to lose my hair. They’ll have to take off my shoulder and attach my arm directly to my neck.
As these thoughts jumped through their confused and fearful hoops, I had a choice to make. I could follow them to their irrational and illogical conclusions, or I could combat them with truth. Sitting in that antiseptic-smelling room as the paper on the examining table beneath me crinkling ominously, I took a deep breath. “I am pressed but not crushed,” I said quietly, hoping that the doctor would not make a sudden appearance and decide that I needed to spend some time in a padded room. “I am persecuted, but not abandoned. Struck down but not destroyed.”
That’s 2 Corinthians 4:8. Rather, it’s a paraphrase of 2 Corinthians 4:8. Trouble is, I didn’t know that was the reference until just now, with the aid of Google.
The doctor came in and examined me, deciding that, at this point, I have an infection in my shoulder. (How that happened, I have no idea. I have a history of the strange and bizarre when it comes to medical issues). He prescribed a 10-day round of antibiotics with the caveat that I was to come in and have the ugly mole and infected tissue cut out if it hadn’t healed by then.
I am cautiously relieved at this point, of course. However, there is a lesson for me here. I know that I am prone to irrational, anxious thinking; it’s only by His grace that I’m not paralyzed by these wild thoughts. Recognizing this truth isn’t enough, however. I need something to fight with. I need His truth. I need it in my mind, my heart, my very soul.
His words are better than gold. They’re also better than the Internet, the television, books, magazines, advice from friends….
Grace and peace to you,
