EKG

Jesus withdrew with his disciples to the sea, and a great crowd followed, from Galilee and Judea and Jerusalem and Idumea and from beyond the Jordan and from around Tyre and Sidon. When the great crowd heard all that he was doing, they came to him. And he told his disciples to have a boat ready for him because of the crowd, lest they crush him, for he had healed many, so that all who had diseases pressed around him to touch him. And whenever the unclean spirits saw him, they fell down before him and cried out, “You are the Son of God.” And he strictly ordered them not to make him known. (Mark 3:7-12 ESV).

As many of you know, in 2014 I had surgery to correct the Atrial fibrillation and flutter in my heart. It has been very successful since then and no further recurrence has been detected. I must say that I always have a bit of anxiety when I go to the doctor and they want to do another EKG to check my heart. Last week was one of those moments. I am preparing for a minor bit of corrective surgery on my left hand and the doctors ordered another one. As the technician finished I asked to see the printout. She said, “Oh, it’s perfectly normal.” I was relieved since it didn’t show any of the signs of irregularity that would have been there prior to the procedure to repair my heart. However, it still had those ups and downs to signal the pulsing of my heart. That reminded me of my life’s journey. It has been full of ups and downs, peaks and valleys. All of us have that common experience. The real key is in understanding that God has plans for each of us and they are good (cf. Romans 8:28). God’s consistent message to all of is that He is always with us. As we trust Him, the journey becomes a pleasant excitement. Joseph is our best example. To truly understand all that Joseph experienced before we meet him at 30 years of age, it is truly necessary to read his life story from the beginning. Unfortunately we do not have the space, but we can look into our own lives and review our experiences, the good and the bad, because none of us, even though we are the apple of God’s eye and created in His image, live the smooth and easy life, for a reason. Joseph had a heart of gratitude, not letting his past unhappy moments define his whole person. The questions we need to explore are simple: Do I trust God completely with my life? Do I give in to my troubling times? Do I talk to God openly and honestly about how I am feeling spiritually? Do I see the good and let the bad truly live in the past? These are tough questions to ponder but very necessary for a grateful and peace filled life in this life. Use those questions to do a spiritual EKG today.