Monthly Archives: August 2019

Rishana and I had a wonderful time Monday night watching our beloved Yankees whip the Mariners once again. This is our yearly tradition and we always have a blast, eating junk food, and cheering till we’re hoarse!

This year, in addition to garlic fries and ice cream, I had an Impossible Burger for the first time. It was surprisingly good! I could definitely eat them more often. I’m a dedicated vegetarian, but if the Impossible Burger tastes anything like a real burger I can see why all you carnivores enjoy them so!

I find it ironic that Burger King, whose commercials used to ask “Where’s the beef?”, is now promoting a beefless burger. Don’t get me wrong, I think vegetarianism is the healthiest diet for our earth and its inhabitants, but I also find it interesting we humans so easily accept substitutes for the real thing in so many areas of life.

For example, instead of getting out in nature, we watch it on TV. Instead of really living life we live vicariously through our movie stars or sports heroes. Instead of enjoying real emotions we block our senses with drugs and alcohol. Even when it comes to spiritual things many reject the real Word of God and instead “they teach man-made ideas as commands from God.” (Mark 7:7 NLT).

We have reached a point in earth’s history “when people will no longer listen to sound and wholesome teaching. They will follow their own desires and will look for teachers who will tell them whatever their itching ears want to hear.” (2 Tim 4:3).

In contrast, Paul tells us in 2 Timothy 3:16, “All Scripture is inspired by God and is useful to teach us what is true and to make us realize what is wrong in our lives. It corrects us when we are wrong and teaches us to do what is right.”

Eating an occasional Impossible Burger is probably not going to hurt your health too much and it may be better for you than eating the real thing. However, in regards to your spiritual needs remember the Bible is “the eternal, living word of God.” (1 Peter 1:23). It’s the real thing!

No matter how eloquent the preacher or how pleasing the message, remember to “Look to God’s instructions and teachings! People who contradict his word are completely in the dark.” (Isaiah 8:20).

This week, go ahead and enjoy an Impossible Burger (or even a real one, if you must), but, when it comes to your spiritual nourishment, accept no substitutes! God’s Word is the real thing! Enjoy it today!

My job has many perks, but one of the biggest is getting to take care of children. I enjoy making them laugh, talking to them, putting them at ease. Unlike so many adults, children are so honest, without any pretenses. With a child, what you see is what you get!

Dealing with children in the Walk-in Clinic can be a challenge, though. They’re scared and it can be hard to get them to relax and open up to me. I’ve found it helps is to get down on their level. At almost 6’ 3”, that can take some work!

I pull up a stool and bend forward, so I can look them in the eye. Then I talk quietly with them, sometimes joking or teasing, trying to get them to relax, before I ask them questions. When they do finally open up and start talking, I try to really listen. When you do that, it’s amazing what you can learn. Kids are pretty perceptive little creatures!

God deals with you and I the same way. He knows we’re kinda scared of the whole idea of Him. After all, He is God and all that. He can snuff any of us out with just a wink or a word. That’s scary!

It’s hard to relate to someone that powerful, which is why God sent His Son to this earth. John 3:16 says, “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son…”. (NIV).

God got down on our level, so we could be comfortable with Him. “Because God’s children are human beings—made of flesh and blood—the Son also became flesh and blood.” (Hebrews 2:14 NLT)

Jesus is one of us. He’s someone we can relate to, relax with, talk with. As we get to know Jesus, we get to know the Father too and come to realize He’s someone we can trust.

When we do finally open up and start talking, we can be sure our Heavenly Father will hear us. Psalm 116 tells us when we pray God “bends down to listen”. He “hears my voice and my prayer for mercy.”

I love that image, the God of the Universe bending down to listen to me! I can deal with a God like that, a God who loves me so much He gets down on my level, so He can hear what I have to say.

This morning God is bending down to listen to you. Don’t be afraid. Open your heart and tell Him your worries and your fears, your wants and your needs.

“In every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.” (Philippians 4:6). And may “…the peace of God, which transcends all understanding…guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” (v. 7).

God bless and have a Happy Sabbath!

Ana’s garden is flourishing this year, with the warm temperatures and unexpected rain we’ve received. The tomato plants are heavy with fruit and we can’t eat the cucumbers fast enough. Huge sunflowers add an extra splash of color to an already beautiful scene. It’s a wonderful time of year!

Of course, none of this would exist if it weren’t for the help of some tiny creatures we seldom think of. Honey bees, and similar pollinators, make all the beautiful flowers we see and the crops we harvest possible. If it weren’t for them, Ana’s garden would be just a barren plot of land.

Today is National Honey Bee Awareness Day, a day set aside to remind us of these little creatures who make such a big difference in all of our lives. Not only do honey bees help our crops grow by pollinating them, but they also provide us with a sweet treat – delicious honey!

The wonderful thing about honey is it can do far more than satisfy your sweet tooth. It also provides some wonderful health benefits. For example:

• Honey can provide a great energy boost after exercise.
• It contains flavonoids, antioxidants which decrease the risk of heart disease and cancer.
• It makes a great cough suppressant.
• Honey can be used to treat ulcers and other GI problems.
• Applied topically, honey can help heal burns and other wounds

Proverbs 16:24 tells us, “Kind words are like honey – sweet to the soul and healthy for the body.” Modern science has proven this true. Kind words and simple acts of kindness can improve our moods, slow the aging process by reducing inflammation in the system, and even lower our blood pressure.

The truly wonderful thing about kind words is they tend to spread, touching life after life, much like the honey bees flitting from flower to flower in Ana’s garden. Kind words make our world a little more beautiful place to live.

So, this Sabbath, on National Honey Bee Awareness Day, follow the honey bee’s example. Drop a kind word here and there and spread a little sweetness wherever you go. You’ll be amazed how good it makes you feel!

Happy Sabbath!

The other day I saw a patient who was complaining of severe back pain. It was affecting her work, keeping her awake at night, and just generally making life miserable. She begged me to do something for her.

In looking at her chart, I discovered she’d been seen in the ER for this condition just a few days before. I asked her if the muscle relaxant and pain medicine she’d been prescribed were helping at all. She replied, “Oh, I never filled the prescriptions. I don’t like taking pills.”

People like this drive me crazy! Offered potential relief from their suffering, they would rather wallow in their pain, making themselves and all around them miserable, then do something they find inconvenient. Well, newsflash! Medicine doesn’t work if you don’t take it!

But am I any better? Far too often I moan and groan about how miserable life can be, falling into depression and despair over my own sins, mistakes, and disappointments, while all the while the remedy for all that ails me sits unopened on the shelf.

2 Timothy 3:16-17 says, “All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.”

In the pages of God’s Word you will find “…salve to put on your eyes, so you can see” (Rev. 3:18), the balm of Gilead to soothe your soul (Jer. 8:22), and living water that you will thirst no more (John 4:10).

Are you in mourning? In the Bible you’ll discover the oil of joy to soothe your soul. (Isaiah 61:3) Depressed? “God…comforts the downcast.” (2 Cor. 7:6). Weighed down with guilt? “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.“ (1 John 1:9).

Are you without hope? Scripture tells us of a God of hope, ready and willing to “fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.” (Romans 15:13). Lost? God’s Word “…is a lamp for my feet, a light on my path.” (Ps. 119:105).

Whatever your affliction, the Bible offers the remedy. But, just as my patient got no relief from the medicine she didn’t take, so God’s Word won’t do you any good while it sits on the shelf, unopened and unread.

Why suffer any longer? Every day, before you do anything else, take your “medicine”. Open God’s Word and drink it in!

But don’t stop there! Take what you learn and share it with a friend in pain, that they too may find relief. If you do, “Then your light will break forth like the dawn, and your healing will quickly appear…” (Isaiah 58:8)

So, this Sabbath, remember to take your medicine! Open God’s Word! It’s good for you!