Headaches, pillows and a pain in the neck.

Back in the early 90’s, when in South Africa, I started getting mysterious stomach pains. After many tests it was finally diagnosed as a Spastic Colon (I think it is called Irritable Bowel Syndrome here) and put down to stress. From that point on my spastic colon basically behaved itself but I have suffered ever since from Headaches &/or Migraines.

Naturally due to the stress of our premature and totally unexpected return to Australia in late 2002, these headaches continued upon our return here. In fact during early 2005, despite less stress than previously, they seemed to get worse. After more medical tests I was advised by my Doctor to do some basic neck exercise, which greatly reduced my headaches and reliance on medication.

Earlier this year we heard of a special pillow for people with neck problems and even though expensive, I bought one and found it very effective and had used it ever since. (Not only that but recommended it to others!)

A couple of weeks ago, I started getting more regular and more severe headaches than I had had before. Early this week as I was driving for work I rubbed my neck and realized that it was sore. Then it hit me. Since I have had the new pillow, I had given up on the neck exercises and thus my headaches were back because of this.

This reminded me of a basic fact of life; whether it be our physical life or our spiritual life as Christians.

Often we know what we need to do to solve a problem or situation, and indeed do it for a short time, and then try something different and/ or new and then promptly forget about all what we practiced before, often, like with my neck, to our detriment. It seems that we have very short memories, and only remember “the Truths” of life when it personally touches or pains us.

Also with my neck, I also realized that now, instead of helping my neck, somehow, someway, the pillow was now stretching it to a place that was causing me problems. It seems that I may have used this special pillow just a bit longer than was both necessary and good for me.

This too, seems to be a factor in some of our spiritual life as well, where we sometimes have need of a “Temporary” aid of some kind but get so used to it that we “forget “that it was only meant to be temporary and we either forget or are reluctant to, give it up and rely on it longer than is necessary and even sometimes longer than is good for us.

What about you? Are you overly relying on a now no longer needed “Temporary” aid of some kind, instead of relying on God?

Every Blessing in Him, Walter