On Thursday Dr. Orrick preached a sermon on Romans 8 in chapel. The focal point of the message was that those who are in Christ have only been given the first fruits of salvation. Meanwhile, our bodies, along with all of creation, are groaning for redemption. Death, pain, and suffering do not belong in the created order. They are a result of sin and one day they will cease to be.
Until recently I have never really thought about my body as fallen, as corrupted by sin. I mean from a theological standpoint, sure, but in actuality I am suppose to the prime of my life. I bike to work, I exercise regularly, last semester I ran a 5k. I’m doing pretty good.
At least that was my state of mind until Monday, when I couldn’t swallow anything, food, liquid, even water, without a shooting pain in my chest. This condition worsened on Tuesday into a dull, incessant pain that would only intensify when I tried eat anything. Literally two bites of yogurt had me curled up in agony, barely able to move.
I ended up spending most of Tuesday in an urgent care facility. They drew my bloodwork, x-rayed my chest, and performed an EKG to try to figure what exactly was wrong.
Today I saw a gastroenterologist to get an official diagnosis. He said that the condition is most likely being caused by an antibiotic that I was taking. Basically, it was destroying the lining of my esophagus, which I assure you is just as painful as it sounds. The healing process is relatively slow for the esophagus, so it may be an entire week, even with prescription drugs, before I’m fully recovered. Until then I cannot consume solid food, coffee, or juices high in citric acid.
I definitely am longing for the day when our bodies will no longer be plagued by the curse and we are set free.
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