Faith and Humility
Donna and I enjoy watching television and listening to a T.V. minister. He is upbeat, optimistic and inspirational. We really like his attitude about trusting God and walking in faith. However, the other night, he mentioned a couple of things that disappointed me and even made me angry.
First, he mentioned how faith can affect the diagnosis diabetes. There has been a lot of home remedies on the internet put out by celebrities as well that are potentially dangerous.
The other thing the minister brought up dealt with depression. He stressed that faith and perseverance alone can cure it. He even used the example of a woman who was diagnosed with depression for many years until she read one of the minster’s books and very carefully studied it over time. This healed her depression, and she has gone on to lead a wonderful life.
Now I would be presumptuous and foolish to suggest that faith alone, for some people, might directly affect diabetes and depression. But the problem is that modern medicine is ignored or cast aside. Untreated diabetes and depression can cause serious, even deadly health consequences.
Since I have both diabetes and depression, the minister’s sermon really hurt me especially the part about depression being cured by faith. As I listened, I began to feel that I lacked the faith and strength of character to heal my depression and that somehow taking medication was a sign of weakness. When I continued to listen, my self-esteem began to sink, and I felt badly about myself
Then for the umpteen time, I reviewed my health. When I didn’t take medications, I sank like a stone and became very depressed. Even when I tried to limit my medications it became problematic.
Although I still like to listen to this minister, because of his inspirational words, I have come to realize that taking medications is my opportunity to remain humble. Yes, faith is very important but humility is also needed to manage my mental health challenges. Honestly, since the minister probably has no frame of reference when he talks about depression, his advice is a problem because, I believe, God uses doctors to help people and we need to have faith in them as well.
While I’m on subject of medications, I’d like to discuss T.V. commercials that advertise various medications, especially how they approach side effects. First, while the commercial discusses the many side effects, it shows viewers petting puppies, having a romantic dinner, and people walking together or playing sports while singing. This is very deceitful because while they list the side effects, the drug companies are keeping the viewer engaged in the beautiful images presented.
Also, when side effects are listed, they have no specific order. Some side effects can be very harmful: lymphoma, kidney failure, and even death to name a few. (My favorites are rectal bleeding and drooling.) How many people had the symptoms and how many people were in the study? For example, were there 1,000 or 10,000 and how long did the study last - one year; ten years. These results would be useful in making decisions. If some side effects are “rare” or “common” what does that mean in terms of percentages? If death occurs once in 1,000,000 cases that is better than death occurring in 1000 cases. My point is that people are often horrified by all the side effects in medications and refuse to take them, or else they take them and worry. My next-door neighbor and I were talking about this the other day, and he suggested the drug companies don’t list the side effects more specifically because they just don’t know. I understand the whole concept of liability for the drug companies, but their list of side effects is really eligible for liability anyway because they are so vague.
The other problem is that for people who really need medications, like for diabetes or depression, it seems like risking one’s life taking them, so they are reluctant to take medications that could really help them. If only the drug companies would worry less about liability and more about telling the truth, it would be helpful. Studies and statistics really need to be made public in commercials and maybe the visuals of people petting puppies could be omitted. The side effects and the visual images are very disingenuous.
Certainly, medications have the potential to be abused. But when self-effort and faith are not enough, doctors can be invaluable. Both faith and medicine are often needed. One shouldn’t necessarily cancel out the other. I’ve included a poem about my faith taken from my poetry book, Poems of Faith, Hope and Love. I hope you’re having a great week. See ya next week!
Patience, Faith and Perseverance
If I want some peace of mind and discern the spirit calling,
I need faith and perseverance and have patience all the time.
I can’t be so temperamental that the little things are strained.
I must learn how to be happy and accept this world of change.
So many times my thoughts are burdened with the worries I collect,
even though I know for certain that they don’t amount to much.
Yet I still think that they’re important, so I just can’t let them go,
even though they have no purpose and they overwhelm my soul.
But now I must have strength and courage and be fearless in my faith.
If it’s patience that I need, then I must also pray for grace.
Patience, faith and perseverance are on my schedule for today.
With God’s mercy and acceptance, I will learn to find my way.
(Please remember these are my own ideas, and I’m not attempting to persuade anyone to change theirs.)
Quotes:
“I’m tired of pretending everything is fine, so I can please everyone else.” Spencer Tracy
“Trying to manage diabetes is hard because if you don’t, there are consequence you’ll have to deal with later in life.” Bryan Adams
“I’ve always had courage. But I didn’t always own my diabetes.” Mary Tyler Moore
https://www.facebook.com/writerjohnfzurn
https://www.portalstoinnerdimensions.com/
Photo credits: nicolas-j-leclercq-qDLLP0yP7FU-unsplash; isaac-quesada-Loahp7cXIf4-unsplash
