The Kingdom-Driven Family

Recently, I had reason to look up the word “crisis” in preparation for my webinar “To Your Health: Prevention Before a Crisis.” I found the definitions to be quite applicable to some recent medical issues in my life. They included:

~  a time of intense difficulty, trouble, or danger.
~  the turning point of a disease when an important change takes place, indicating either recovery or death.
~  a time when a difficult or important decision must be made.

I had a heart attack the last day of June 2014, and, while that would definitely fall under the first definition, my time of “crisis” came a month and a half before that. In the middle of May, I experienced some pain in my lower right abdomen. I was pretty sure I wasn’t having appendicitis because I wasn’t experiencing other symptoms that go along with it. But, to satisfy my husband, I made an appointment with the doctor. During the visit she was fairly certain I wasn’t having any problems with my appendix (temperature was normal and a physical exam seemed to point to a pulled muscle), but just to make sure, I had a scan done. She sent me home and told me she would call me with the results.

Later in the afternoon, she called and it was one of those good news/bad news scenarios. She said, “You don’t have appendicitis, but you do have fatty liver.” Since she had been the on-call doctor, she told me to contact my regular doctor for more information. I decided I wanted more information right away and spent the next several hours researching fatty liver. What I discovered was some bad news I was not expecting. To summarize,

Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is one cause of a fatty liver, occurring when fat is deposited (steatosis) in the liver not due to excessive alcohol use. It is related to insulin resistance and the metabolic syndrome. Most patients with NAFLD have few or no symptoms.

This is when definitions two and three listed above kicked in. I reached a point where I had to make a decision as to whether or not I was going to make a change in the direction of recovery or death. I felt strongly that the Holy Spirit was telling me that it was now or never. I saw what the medical outcomes are of NAFLD, insulin resistance and metabolic syndrome. I resolved to choose life. That day, May 10,^, I determined that I was going to remove from my diet processed foods and fast acting carbohydrates, which included breads and desserts. By God’s grace, I began to see some signs of improvement.

Fast forward the clock to the last day of June, when I ended up in the emergency room, followed by the placement of two stents in my right coronary artery the following day. Some would say that is when I had my crisis. Yes, it was a time of danger, but it really shouldn’t have been too much of a surprise considering all the other indications (labs, weight gain, blood pressure) pointed to the likelihood of a heart attack. But, I had already gone through making the resolution that I was going to change things. By the time I was in the hospital, I had already lost ten pounds by observing my new diet. Now, less that six months later, I have lost over 24 percent of my body weight and dropped two sizes in clothes.

I say all this not to boast, for

But far be it from me to boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by which the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world. (Galatians 6:14 ESV)

I say this by way of encouragement. I purpose not to let the crises I faced go to waste, because I see too many of my sisters and brothers in Christ heading in the direction where I ended up. Many of them, like me, believe the Word of God speaks to every area of life and thought, but have never really applied it to nutrition and health.

Scripture tells us that

The prudent sees danger and hides himself, but the simple go on and suffer for it. (Prov. 22:3)

So whoever knows the right thing to do and fails to do it, for him it is sin. (James 4:17)

So, if you are interested in making some serious changes in the right direction, I’d be more than happy to help you get started. After all, there is much work to be done in building the Kingdom of God, and I would like as many healthy colleagues working alongside me in this pursuit. To God be the glory!!