Another reason for the dose adjustment in my chemo regimen
was to treat the chemo-induced peripheral neuropathy. This is damage of
peripheral nerve fibers that send sensory information to the central nervous
system. Many other health conditions can cause this set of symptoms and
different areas may be affected. I had numbing and tingling sensation of hands,
increased sensitivity to cold, pain and leg cramping. The leg pain caught my
attention because although my brain is receiving the signal that my legs are
hurting when I touch them I don’t feel that this is where it really hurts. It
is a pain “you can’t touch”. It is a problem of my nervous system.
"The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond
cure. Who can understand it?" (Jeremiah 17: 9, NIV)
The context in which this verse is written shows us that one
of the areas in which the heart deceives us the most is by making us believe
that we are trusting in God when we really are not. We trust in ourselves, in
others, in our health, in the money, in our abilities, in our plans, in our dreams,
in our opinions, in our religion, etc. What is the result? Fears that "you
can’t touch," pain that “you can’t touch”, bitterness that "you can’t
touch" disappointment that "you can’t touch", frustration that “you
can’t touch” and insecurities that “you can’t touch”. A whole set of symptoms and you can’t pinpoint
the root cause because it is a heart problem.
Christ came to deal with the condition of our heart. He is
the mediator of a new covenant with better promises. The promise is:
"I will put my laws in their minds and
write them on their hearts. I will be their God, and they will be my people…they
will all know me, from the least of them to the greatest." (Hebrews
8: 10-11, NIV)
It is possible to have a heart in which the law of God is
written instead of having a deceitful heart. Hebrews 13: 21 teaches that God
may equip us with everything good for doing his will and that he may work in us
what is pleasing to him, all of this through Jesus Christ. What a blessing!
What a relief! God is not playing hide and seek. He is not playing riddles difficult
to solve. He doesn’t want to put on our shoulders a heavy yoke. He wants to
write his law on our heart. This means he also produces the desire and the
willingness to obey it.
There are situations in life that reveal in what or who our
trust is built. When there are no back up plans and we are against the wall, the
neuropathies of the heart are revealed. But there is healing and medicine
through Christ. He is the enabler of better promises. The promise that he will
prepare us to do his will. The promise that we are His and He is ours. The
promise of a personal encounter with God.
Just as I needed a
dose adjustment to treat my peripheral neuropathy, I need more of Christ to
treat my deceitful heart.
Becky
All rights reserved. Rebecca Parrilla. June/2015
No comments:
Post a Comment