Clean Like New!

Create for me a clean heart, O God!
Renew a resolute spirit within me!

Psalm 51:10

 

I have probably told you before, but sit right back and you're going to hear it again.  In 2005, I began feeling very sluggish and became easily tired.  Finally, I went to the doctor to get a physical.  During the stress test, my left arm went numb.  The doctor stopped the test and told me "You aren't going home."  And within 48 hours, I had quadruple bypass surgery at the ripe old age of 43.  I admit, I did NOT enjoy the recovery process, especially when the incision (which went from chest to belly) began to itch on the inside.  Not just a slight itch like a bug bite....oh NO!  It was that itch like you're wearing a cheap wool sweater against your skin and you cannot scratch it!

 

The itch listed for a few weeks and I was told that I needed to start getting out to exercise a bit more than walking to the mailbox and back.  So I began to toddle off determined to make it to the end of the street.  And I felt AMAZING!  In fact, I felt SO amazing that I kept right on going until I had walked the entire block.  It was as if the doctor ad put a brand new heart in me.  

 

When I went back to the cardiologist for a check up, he told me that bypasses were helping the blood flow more freely and that was why it felt so much better.  He said the blood was flowing through clean arteries for the first time in a long time.  

 

This, like so many other experiences, got filed away to use later.  Well, welcome to later! When you look at a dirty window, the light can still get in and you can still see out (for the most part), but you see things from a dirty and jaded perspective, just like the blood that flowed through my clogged arteries.  But when the window is cleaned, the perspective changes!  It's like seeing the sight for the first time!  And my heart thought the new arteries were amazing because the blood could flow without being sluggish or jaded.

 

As you prepare for the beginning of a brand new year, begin it with a brand new, clear, clean heart! Ask God to give you one, He's good at it and is always willing!