While at the first appointment of our new doctor, he suggested I had high blood pressure. Arguing with him, I gave him my reason for the elevated reading of that day: White Coat Syndrome. I learned of this while waiting for the doctor at another appointment when the nurse asked if I had White Coat Syndrome, a phrase I hadn’t heard of before. He explained it was high blood pressure caused by anxiety when in a medical environment. Apparently, it’s a real thing; the technical name is White Coat Hypertension. “Yup. That’s me!” I responded. So that’s what I told our new doctor, “I have White Coat Syndrome. My blood pressure is only high when I see you!”
But then—at my physical last year—I had a change of heart as I listened to his concerns about my rising blood pressure and the possible outcomes of letting it go untreated. Reluctantly, I agreed to begin a low dose of blood pressure medication. I was very faithful to take my little pill every evening before crawling into bed. When I began to consistently forget to take it at bedtime, I decided I’d switch to the morning. To remind myself, I hung a white board over the bathroom sink that read, “Take your bp medicine.” Over time, however, I became more inconsistent and careless; maybe the truth is I cared less about taking the pill because, in the back of my mind, I was convinced I really didn’t need it. Today … I have a different viewpoint.
After weeks of ignoring signs and symptoms my blood pressure might be high, I finally decided to pull out the Blood Pressure Monitor and have a look; another something I used to faithfully do. In the same way I had gotten out of the habit of taking my medication, I also was out of this habit too. Grabbing the monitor, I slipped on the cuff and waited for the results: 159/101. This seemed wrong so I waited a bit and retook it. The next reading was 167/103. What did I do? Of course, I took one of my pills, tried not to become anxious and went about my day. Returning home that afternoon, I decided to check it one more time. The results were higher. I called the doctor’s office and spoke with the nurse who told me to 1) stop taking my blood pressure, rest for the night and 2) come in first thing in the morning. (I wanted to go to Urgent Care that night because I thought for sure I was in urgent crisis!) When I arrived for my appointment my blood pressure was 177/103. An EKG was ordered and questions were asked. I had to confess I had not been faithful to take the medicine prescribed to me. Sure, I had taken a pill for the last two days—I felt my life depended on it—but for the last several months, I hadn’t taken a single dose. It’s like cramming for a test the night before when you have had months to prepare. The EKG came back normal—praise Jesus—new medication was prescribed and a follow-up visit scheduled. A new determination within has also been established as I’ve had to acknowledge the truth of my need right now. I learned a valuable lesson: to experience the full benefits of the remedy, I must be faithful to digest the proper dosage.
Every. Single. Day.
What is true in the natural is also true in the spiritual; if I am to be healthy spiritually, I must be faithful to digest the proper dosage of God’s Word. I won’t experience the full, abundant life Jesus talked about in John 10:10 if I ignore my need for consistent time spent with Him. In looking back, I can see the changes in my attitude towards my time in the Word and my need for Jesus.
I’ve argued the facts about the need for it,
I’m a good person ~ I don’t need Jesus or Bible reading
I’ve reluctantly agreed I might have a need,
After hearing about the prospect of Hell, I accepted God’s plan of salvation
I tried hard to remember why I had a need,
I bought a Bible, posted a few scriptures, tried to be “good”
I became careless with the remedy,
I became a faithful (irregular) church attendee
I’ve had moments of caring less about the need,
Living my life for myself, my plans, disregarding God completely
When suddenly, without warning, I found myself overwhelmed by a crisis,
I needed urgent spiritual care
This became the moment of my life dependency on Christ and the Word of God. John explains, “In the beginning [before all time] was the Word (Christ), and the Word was with God, and the Word was God Himself” (John 1:1, AMP).
The Word was in the beginning.
The Word was with God.
The Word is God Himself.
Jesus is the Word. When you spend time in the Bible, you are filling your entire being with Jesus. We must not be fooled into believing we don’t need His care. We can't pretend we are doing fine without quiet time with Him. When we spend time every day seeking Him, we won’t need to cram when the test comes; and believe me, tests are coming. When the Word is implanted within us we can pull up what we need, making it much easier to avoid the panic—and possible high blood pressure—when trials do come.
Act now on the
Benefits received from your daily dose of
Christ
But then—at my physical last year—I had a change of heart as I listened to his concerns about my rising blood pressure and the possible outcomes of letting it go untreated. Reluctantly, I agreed to begin a low dose of blood pressure medication. I was very faithful to take my little pill every evening before crawling into bed. When I began to consistently forget to take it at bedtime, I decided I’d switch to the morning. To remind myself, I hung a white board over the bathroom sink that read, “Take your bp medicine.” Over time, however, I became more inconsistent and careless; maybe the truth is I cared less about taking the pill because, in the back of my mind, I was convinced I really didn’t need it. Today … I have a different viewpoint.
After weeks of ignoring signs and symptoms my blood pressure might be high, I finally decided to pull out the Blood Pressure Monitor and have a look; another something I used to faithfully do. In the same way I had gotten out of the habit of taking my medication, I also was out of this habit too. Grabbing the monitor, I slipped on the cuff and waited for the results: 159/101. This seemed wrong so I waited a bit and retook it. The next reading was 167/103. What did I do? Of course, I took one of my pills, tried not to become anxious and went about my day. Returning home that afternoon, I decided to check it one more time. The results were higher. I called the doctor’s office and spoke with the nurse who told me to 1) stop taking my blood pressure, rest for the night and 2) come in first thing in the morning. (I wanted to go to Urgent Care that night because I thought for sure I was in urgent crisis!) When I arrived for my appointment my blood pressure was 177/103. An EKG was ordered and questions were asked. I had to confess I had not been faithful to take the medicine prescribed to me. Sure, I had taken a pill for the last two days—I felt my life depended on it—but for the last several months, I hadn’t taken a single dose. It’s like cramming for a test the night before when you have had months to prepare. The EKG came back normal—praise Jesus—new medication was prescribed and a follow-up visit scheduled. A new determination within has also been established as I’ve had to acknowledge the truth of my need right now. I learned a valuable lesson: to experience the full benefits of the remedy, I must be faithful to digest the proper dosage.
Every. Single. Day.
What is true in the natural is also true in the spiritual; if I am to be healthy spiritually, I must be faithful to digest the proper dosage of God’s Word. I won’t experience the full, abundant life Jesus talked about in John 10:10 if I ignore my need for consistent time spent with Him. In looking back, I can see the changes in my attitude towards my time in the Word and my need for Jesus.
I’ve argued the facts about the need for it,
I’m a good person ~ I don’t need Jesus or Bible reading
I’ve reluctantly agreed I might have a need,
After hearing about the prospect of Hell, I accepted God’s plan of salvation
I tried hard to remember why I had a need,
I bought a Bible, posted a few scriptures, tried to be “good”
I became careless with the remedy,
I became a faithful (irregular) church attendee
I’ve had moments of caring less about the need,
Living my life for myself, my plans, disregarding God completely
When suddenly, without warning, I found myself overwhelmed by a crisis,
I needed urgent spiritual care
This became the moment of my life dependency on Christ and the Word of God. John explains, “In the beginning [before all time] was the Word (Christ), and the Word was with God, and the Word was God Himself” (John 1:1, AMP).
The Word was in the beginning.
The Word was with God.
The Word is God Himself.
Jesus is the Word. When you spend time in the Bible, you are filling your entire being with Jesus. We must not be fooled into believing we don’t need His care. We can't pretend we are doing fine without quiet time with Him. When we spend time every day seeking Him, we won’t need to cram when the test comes; and believe me, tests are coming. When the Word is implanted within us we can pull up what we need, making it much easier to avoid the panic—and possible high blood pressure—when trials do come.
Act now on the
Benefits received from your daily dose of
Christ
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