One of the Main Causes of Illnesses.

The mail drops through your letterbox. Whether it's the slot through your front door here in the UK or the mailbox standing outside the front yard of your property over in the States, the principle is the same. You feel your emotions rise as you slit the envelope open. Your heart begins to beat faster, you feel a shiver pass down your spine as you examine the enclosed energy bill.

Your instincts were right. How could your creditors bill you for such a high energy use? Had your electric or gas meter gone haywire? Or is this yet another proof of inflation, and you're beginning to believe that your well-earned income will struggle to meet the required payment?

Gas and electric meters at a typical UK home.

Here in the UK, when our three major public-owned utility companies such as gas, electric and water were sold off to privatisation under Margaret Thatcher's administration spanning the 1980s, the funding was no longer subsidised by the taxpayer who was keeping our household bills in moderation. Instead, shareholders wanted to make for themselves greater profits, and it was the consumers who ended up footing the bill. And one of the cuts made in serving the customer was to do away with the meter man, the chap who called every quarter to read your meter, record on the clipboard the current meter reading, and then pass the displayed figures on to the billing dept of the supplier. 

Not anymore.

Instead, the company now hire "experts" - whoever they may be - to work out an estimation without leaving the office, and that's what is printed on the bill. In most cases, the estimation is only slightly out of sync with the actual meter reading. But within the last month, the gas bill came through the door carrying a vast overestimation of more than £500. Immediately, I went to the outside closet to read the meter. According to the "expert", I had consumed 1,547 more units of gas than I actually did, hence the way-out-of-sync overestimation. I contacted them straight away to give the correct reading. Unfortunately, that was done via automation.

However, I received no reply until I made an extra effort, including a wait, to speak to an actual human being, who turned out to be a female with an Asian accent, asking for the latest reading, which I was able to give her.

Then, assuming the issue will be resolved sooner or later, I allowed it to pass. However, behind her stoicism, surely my beloved was anxious for our future. But we gave it no more thought and we got on with our lives.

Then one afternoon this week, Alex began to develop severe pain in her lower abdomen. Fortunately, the district nurse had to make a regular call, and seeing her agony, it was her, and not us, who made an emergency call for an ambulance. I groaned. I have seen it all before. But despite her dosage of painkillers, her pain continued as she was led in a wheelchair to the waiting vehicle outside. Even our neighbour shook his head. He too had seen it all before. And now, as I write, I'm alone in the house - again.

Another CTS or Computed Tomography Scan was made of her affected region, just like last time. And like before, there was absolutely nothing amiss with any of her organs. The only way to keep the pain under control is through painkillers. It was then I managed to chat with the consultant over the phone. I asked him whether the pain is a message to the brain, informing it that there's something amiss. His reply was that this was not a necessity. Rather, she's suffering from chronic pain. It's the kind of natural discomfort that can't be treated by surgery.

Since she was taken in, I kept on praying, crying to God for mercy on both of us. Over the years, I have become sceptical over "the healing ministry" conducted by some charismatic churches. In truth, I had never witnessed supernatural healing, despite being a Christian believer for half a century! Indeed, I have heard tales of such incidents, plenty of them, but I have yet to see a miracle for myself. Therefore, it came as no real surprise that I felt discouraged during a Zoom prayer meeting - and said so.

The host, who was also one of our elders, reminded me of King David's agony, expressed in Psalm 13. His prayers also seemed wasted, unanswered, as if there was a barrier of solid brass between heaven and earth. Yet, he concluded that his trust and dependence on God's goodness will always stand firm. Well, if David can do it, so can I. Not to forget Job, too. He had lost nearly everything and his lack of health brought him to death's door, but still insisted on God's goodness. And should the reader confine these incidences to the Old Testament, then consider the Apostle Paul, one of the main New Testament writers. Throughout his ministry, his "thorn in the flesh" was most likely conjunctivitis, a delibating eye infection. Even his plea with God to have the "thorn" removed remained unanswered.

Atheists love to scoff at our faith, demonstrating that unanswered prayer is proof of the non-existence of God and that we as Christians hold to the belief that the earth is only a few thousand years old, and then present their convincing evidence of Darwinian evolution going back by billions of years, thus denying the reality of the Gospel.

However, I digress. The truth is, my faith is backed by science and not refuted. And thus, after prayer and a series of circumstantial evidence, Alex's pain, including the aches she suffers from her neurological ailments, can be blamed on two organs, each one sitting on each of her kidneys - the adrenal glands.

The Adrenal Glands each rests on a kidney.

The adrenal glands are essential for self-preservation. For example, if threatened by a gang in a narrow alley, you will either fight or flee. More likely the latter. When confronted with such danger, the brain sends a message to the two glands via the nerves to produce the hormone adrenaline. Its presence in the bloodstream causes the lungs to breathe heavier for greater oxygenation, the heart to beat faster to supply extra oxygenated blood, and the widening of the arteries to provide a greater blood flow to the muscles, allowing the victim to run faster and for a longer distance to safety. At any bleeding wound, with adrenaline, the blood will also congeal more quickly, saving on excess blood loss.

Fright can take many forms, such as being chased by a large barking dog, such as an Alsation or German Shepherd. Or waking up in the middle of the night to see a silhouette of a man gazing at you from the window beyond the foot of the bed. Or in the case of my younger brother many years ago. As an arachnophobic, he picked up a cup at random from the kitchen shelf to make coffee. He peered into the cup to see a huge house spider nestling at the bottom. His adrenal glands responded to the sudden fright by throwing the cup violently, smashing it to pieces on the hard thermoplastic-tiled floor. The spider was then nowhere to be seen.

Or the case when I was a pool lifeguard back in 1973. My attention was drawn by a group of school children near a corner of the pool, all taking fright of a huge cockroach floating on the water. Fortunately, I didn't have to get into the pool, as I was able to kneel down at the edge and reach for the insect and dispose of it. Nothing heroic, it was part of my job. Had I been afraid, then I wouldn't have qualified for that particular vocation.

But should I give an exaggerated expression of myself, I have fears of two specific situations. One is walking or cycling through a flock of geese, especially when rearing their young. This was after reading in a newspaper about a man who was attacked by an angry swan and had one of his arm bones broken. I have known to divert onto a different trail if I see a flock of geese ahead. 

The other fear I have is of lifts or elevators. In Singapore, the lift to my hostel dormitory stopped between floors and I fell into a near-panic as a punched the alarm, which got the lift moving. And again more recently, with Alex in her wheelchair at Waterloo Station. The lift jammed between floors and by punching the alarm, the lift dropped to the bottom of the shaft with a sharp jolt and the doors opened. We couldn't get out quick enough! Thus, in all cases, my adrenal glands were called into action when faced with potential danger. Whenever possible, I use the stairs instead.

Thus the purpose of these two glands, created to respond to dangerous situations in lifesaving fright. During such situations, the glands produce enough adrenaline to deal with the problem. Afterwards, the body has a way of flushing the hormone from the bloodstream, mainly through urination.

However, excess stress can prompt the glands to keep on producing adrenaline on a steady basis. Stressors can come in all forms. For example, the inner stress brought about by the overestimation of the gas bill by over £500 could have led to my wife's severe abdominal pain which had put her in hospital. Added to her stress is her constant fear of me having a sudden heart attack. This form of stress developed in her after I had an aorta valve replacement in 2015, and relying on medication ever since.

Thus it can be concluded:-

Stressor >> Emotional turmoil >> Adrenal glands reacting >> Illness.

Thus, taking two living examples:-

Husband's heart failure >> Emotional turmoil >> Adrenal glands reacting >> Pain.

Low self-esteem >> Emotional turmoil >> Adrenal glands reacting >> Heart failure.

Those wonderful glands, specifically designed as a lifesaver, can be activated by prolonged stress and unlike with the fright situation, adrenaline remains in the bloodstream throughout its steady production and flow. It's this constant presence of the excess hormone that causes a variety of illnesses - fatigue, irritability, constipation, bloating, diarrhoea, high blood pressure, weight gain, erectile dysfunction, irregular menstruation periods, along with more serious ailments including a lower immune system, a greater target for infections, diabetes, arthritis, ulcerative colitis, cancer and heart failure. And there are many more.*

A lateral flow test device.

Hence, the importance of the Gospel. It not only leads to salvation, but its application can also help the believer cope with stress. I have found that prayer - the heartfelt calling to God for help - is psychologically beneficial. Coupled with this is the warm support from other church members, especially when it comes to solving various problems. Thus building friendships within the church environment makes a big difference in handling stressful situations when each has a common denominator, a God who loves us enough to save us through faith in his Son, Jesus Christ.

Right now, unless my result is negative on the Covid lateral flow test, I won't be able to visit my beloved at her ward. This has the potential to increase her stress levels, prolong her pain and delay any recovery. I hope I can be tested easily and pass, allowing me to visit her. After all, it's the state of my own health which had contributed to her ailments.

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*Dr S.I. McMillen M.D. - None Of These Diseases, 1966, 1980. Lakeland Publishers.

London Museum of Natural History, Gallery of Human Biology, 1982.

A Facebook Shocker...

This morning I gasped when I saw a poster appear on my laptop screen whilst scrolling down the Facebook wall. It was an advert posted by someone I knew personally. He is to appear this evening on a Channel 4 chat show to talk about his knowledge of recent Middle East history, focusing on the wars and political unrest which had taken place there in the past seventy years.

And I will honestly admit that I have a pinch of envy for him. Appearing on national television. Wow! He even asked us to ignore the football which will be shown concurrently and instead, tune in to his interview on the commercial channel. Does he mean Match of the Day on the BBC, a popular sports programme, especially for male viewers?

Meanwhile, I sit alone at home typing this blog. Alone. For yet again, my beloved wife is in a ward at Frimley Park Hospital. She was taken there by ambulance late last night after spending hours suffering intense pain in her abdomen. Early this morning, news came in. Apparently, she was diagnosed with possible Pancreatitis, a serious illness caused, so I'm told, by the presence of stones in her gall bladder.

In one sense, having a diagnosis is very helpful. Therefore, she will be given the appropriate treatment. Actually, I do recall seeing the presence of a gall bladder stone on an X-Ray image way back in 2007 at John Radcliffe Hospital, after developing unrelated symptoms following the birth of our third daughter. But although the medical staff was aware of the presence of a stone, they decided to ignore it. This might have been due to their assumption that over time it will dissolve into the bile the bladder produces.

Whether this lies behind her health problems, other than her breast cancer, or not, remains to be seen. But here, I would like to highlight a contrast between this fellow on TV and seems to enjoy life to the full, and our own lives of prolonged health anxieties, frequent hospital visits and an uncertain future.

It looks to me that the key to a fulfilled life all comes down to a high education level. The person referred is actually one of a twin. His brother had graduated to be a medical doctor. Also, I have met and spoken to their parents (but had so far, I never met the other sibling.) I wonder how proud this elderly couple were of their son's academic achievements? Their sense of successful upbringing of their twin sons to reach such an academic goal, and thus providing a useful service to their communities - was quite a contrast to the way my own parents felt about me during my teenage years as a slow learner. The resulting boyhood retardation meant that I was one of those 1960s school-leavers who walked into the world of work with absolutely nothing academic to show. Therefore, I have always looked upon a graduate as an icon for a richly fulfilled life and deserving of a higher level of respect from the rest of us.

Yet, despite the slight sense of envy I may feel about his television appearance - and thus a gateway to fame - I wish him well. As a historian, he is also the author of two published books on the Middle East. And that is after cautioning him that specialising in a single overseas location could restrict the numbers of those interested. Unless told specifically otherwise, I will never know whether my word of caution had ever held true or not.

It's this level of education that had made him one of several lay-preachers in our church - this cultural preference presenting a phenomenon I had seen many times before in different churches. For example, the present Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, attended Eton College, followed by gaining a MA at the University of Cambridge, and a BA at the University of Durham. And I once read that Cambridge, in particular, holds a "gene pool" of undergrads from whom the Church of England draws for its future clergy. Rather different from Jesus' selection of his twelve from a more rabble background!

It's this high level of education elevating the student to a higher status in his social life, attaining respect, even admiration from the church elders as well as from the rest of the congregation, along with the rest of the world. Like, during one Summer Sunday morning several years ago, when it was officially announced that a "seminar of Creation" - delivered by this same academic - was to be held that same evening. And I was there to hear the announcement.

And so I attended, only to end up listening to our hero's denial of the historicity of the first chapter of Genesis and reducing the chapter to the level of myth. By mythologising history - that is presenting Scripture as if the events written therein had never occurred - is making ineffective one of the major foundation stones on which the Gospel of Jesus Christ rests. Yes, the same person denying the historic truthfulness of the Bible - appearing on a chat show on TV - whilst at the same time, another person who is a true believer and an advocate for Scriptural truthfulness, carries his cross so heavy and burdensome, that he emotionally breaks as he watches his beloved being carted away to the hospital for the umpteenth time.

As I wrote on my Facebook page, I would be more than willing to jump into his shoes, but would the very thought of jumping into my shoes be a source of terror for anyone? This sense of unfairness - why is one person so blessed, due to his excelling at school, while another has to drag his feet each morning to a monotonous, dead-end and dirty, low-paid job where he also suffers from being bullied by his colleagues? An accurate description of the early days of my work life soon after leaving school. And indeed, quite a good metaphor. While I was experiencing such humiliating conditions around 1970, someone from the Midlands, who I will get to know many years later, had just graduated from University and will be flying off to Africa on a voluntary project. 

The Rev Justin Welby

Could this sense of unfairness and insecurity be behind many cases of domestic abuse? I wonder how many husbands, boyfriends, or partners feel their egos under threat by their partner's level of education, wealth, or professional career? And then develop a controlling streak within the relationship that could end up in a violent assault, even death? And so the Media keeps reporting violent assaults of females in the hands of very insecure and egotistical males. And such could be exacerbated by the annual reports that girls are doing better than boys at school and therefore have a wider career opportunity. And so, a Christless soul moves on before being caught and brought to justice - only to end up behind bars with very low self-esteem that often leads to prison violence.

A Christless soul? Indeed, if my own experience can prove anything, to know God through faith in Jesus Christ is like a picture more worthy than a thousand words, or like the beauty of a face launching a thousand ships. But I need to be real here. There are many occasions when I doubted God, His love or Sovereign power. Or when the chips are down, wondering where God is or which direction our future will take into the unknown.

As one who has been acquainted with the Bible for several decades, our friend's preach posed no threat to my faith. Rather, I stood up to him after the service to defend the historicity of this early chapter of Genesis after dismissing the factual side of the book for his support for science. For example, according to him, how could the Earth possibly exist four days before the rest of the Universe was created, including the Sun, Moon and Stars? It's this rhetoric that brings the atheist to laugh at us as Creationists living in a land of make-believe, instead of facing hard facts of life, that is, believing in Darwin's Evolutionary theories and Charles Lyell's Uniformitarian Geology. 

Too bad I don't have all the answers! Did light exist before the start of Day 1? For God said, "Let there be light" and there was light. And God saw that the light was very good, and He separated the light from the darkness. God called the light "day", and the darkness He called "night". And there was evening, and there was morning - the first day - Genesis 1:3-5. Could this be a hint that the Earth was already rotating before the 4th Day of Creation?

But the beauty of the Gospel remains standing on the firm and historic foundation of Genesis. The Fall was indeed an Earth-shaking event, this separation of man from God through sin, and the death of the spirit - that part of him where he communicates freely with God - had done nothing less than erect a barrier consisting of four large stones which had blocked man from God, and unless God acts, man is destined to remain separated from God forever.

Although some Christian leaders might have said that it was God who built the wall, actually, it was the man, Adam, who built it. It was Adam who fell, not God.

The topmost boulder is the character of God - including perfection and holiness.

The next boulder is the debt of sin that cannot be repaid, as God's holiness demands absolute perfection.

The third boulder is slavery to Satan. When Adam ate the forbidden fruit, he sold himself and all his descendants to the Devil, who became "the father of all mankind", according to John 8:43-44.

The fourth block in the wall is spiritual death - the loss of communication with God.

Thus, a very thick barrier exists between a sinful man and God. So strong is that wall, no man can demolish it. No works done by sinful men to earn salvation can knock the barrier down. Our acceptance of Creation and the Fall as historic are absolute necessities to establish this statement of faith. The events surrounding the Fall speaks so clearly of the historicity of the early chapter of Genesis. 

After the Fall, aprons made of sewn fig leaves symbolises man's futile effort to reconcile himself with God. Those leaves were totally ignored by God when He called them to account. The bushes they hid behind is a good illustration of the fourfold barrier now standing between God and man. But God, in His mercy, slays an animal and clothe them - a picture of redemption through the death of an innocent intercessor whose blood was shed to make atonement.

However, eternal redemption was achieved by the Father sending his beloved Son to die in atonement for sin and to bring reconciliation with God, restoring our communication with Him. It's the work of God in its entirety. As the aprons have shown, no man can assist in God's redemption.

By the death of Jesus Christ the Son of God by crucifixion, the wall is demolished in four stages occurring simultaneously: 

God's character ----> Propitiation. The turning away of God's wrath against sin.

The debt of Sin ----> The Certificate of Debt - paid to Infinite Justice by Christ's death.

Slavery to Satan ----> Redemption. Freedom from slavery to sin to that of righteousness.

Spiritual Death ---->Substitutionary Death. Christ died so we might be made alive.

The intricacies between Creation, the Fall, and Redemption forms a triunity of truth that any denial of historic facts cannot find any place in the faith, which, to me, is so glorious to God and vital to my wellbeing. And the wellbeing of all who were at Ascot Life Church on that warm Sunday evening.

I hope our friend's broadcast goes well. Although very patchy in the Facebook advert, I believe it was made to promote his books, which may be flagging in sales.

All the best to him.