Under the Weather

I have spent much of the morning apologizing to people I have encountered.  "I'm sorry that I'm not my usual self today."  "Could you say that again?  I didn't quite hear you."  "Would you mind if we lowered the blinds?  I'm a little sensitive to light today for some reason."  After several hours of this, I finally admitted to myself that I was not feeling well -- you could say I'm a little under the weather -- and made the dreaded trip to the doctor.  My regular physician was out of town on a business trip (a miracle in itself given the horrific attack upon Dr. Trent Pierce in West Memphis, Arkansas a few years ago), but his colleague was able to work me in.  Thankfully I'm not terribly sick, but I do have the beginning of an upper respiratory infection.  Medications have been prescribed and I should be back to normal in a few days.

Situations come in our lives that make us feel BLAH!  An unkind word, a missed opportunity, the betrayal of a friend, or a personal pity party can be the culprit.  Days like that happen in all of our lives just as our bodies will inevitably become sick from time to time.  Despite the vitamins we have taken and the rest we have gotten, viruses creep into our bodies.  Attacks come against our spiritual man as well even when we have spent time in the Word of God and in prayer.  On those BLAH days, my response and mindset is most important.

Physically, it would be very easy for me to crawl in bed, pull the covers over my head and wait for the sickness to explode on the scene.  That's not a solution for me;  I've done that too many times and know what happens.....I REALLY get sick!  Instead, I choose to maintain a level of activity while insuring that I am getting the nourishment, vitamins, and rest that my body needs.  In other words, I'm not going at a crazy pace, but I'm not sitting down and stopping either.

The same thing is true of our spiritual man.  When I find myself having a blue day, I may slow my pace a bit, but I cannot stop.  Rather, I must recognize that the spiritual disciplines of reading the Word, prayer, meditation and worship (the things that my emotions would first want me to give up) are the very things that I need to maintain in order to renew my strength and my health.  It's by continuing that my soul receives the tools it needs to fight.

Yes, we will all be under the weather from time to time.  The question is how long we are going to continue to feel that way.  I choose to make a trip to see the Great Physician and allow Him to prescribe exactly what I need in order to be totally restored to the person He intends me to be.