Self-Checkup
November 2006

"House"; the title of the breakout Fox television series of 2006. Millions tune in every week to observe the wisecracking, cynical doctor named Dr. House and engage in the happenings of the fast paced life of his hospital.

One episode opened with news of a devastating crash that had caused great injury to a prodigious amount of people. The ER was stormed by dozens of people in need of medical attention. In the midst of the flurry of activity, two women came in that were best friends. One was clearly fine; untouched by the accident and more eager to tend to her friend who was obviously in need of help. When offered a check up by the hospital nurse, she declined. She was far more concerned about the health of her comrade and devoted her attention to her recovery.

Curled up on my sofa, I watched the program anxiously, heartbroken for the suffering woman and sympathetic to the woman praying for her friend's survival. She scurried around the hospital seeking medical advice for her beloved friend who winced in pain. The storyline continued to chronicle the stories of others in the hospital while the young woman continued quizzing the doctors about her friend's condition. She frantically requested pain suppressants, the doctor's attention and attended to any arising need. The entire day she made cell phone calls, ate meals and offered meals and cracked jokes to keep her friend company. Once the situation became stabilized, she relaxed and even began to entertain others. Her personality was so effervescent that it attracted the admiration of many; including the hospital staff. Her engaging persona lit up the bland world in the ER.

And then, all of a sudden, with absolutely no warning, she collapsed. The hospital staff who had just been laughing at her jokes and assisting in the care of her tragically injured companion gathered around her to administer the help that she was so suddenly in need of. Nothing they could do was of any value. Within sixty seconds, she was pronounced dead. Everyone sat in stunned shock as an X-Ray revealed that although no external injury had been evident the accident had caused a lethal amount of internal bleeding. The entire day her life was slowly ebbing away and she didn’t know it. She had been standing in a hospital, interacting with the very people and procedures that could have saved her but she had spent her time looking after another instead of herself. With such energy, personality and wit, who could have known that she was literally dying right before their eyes.

"Examine yourself!" the great Apostle Paul declared to the Corinthian church. Why is this a command that He has to give not just once (1 Corinthians 11:28) but twice (2 Corinthians 13:5) in the span of two books of the Bible? Because this simple and necessary act is often the least observed. The tendency of the human heart is to seek the solution for another's need, assist in the molding of another's soul and judge the intentions of another's heart. This way there's not time left for our own much needed care. Rarely if ever do we willingly get down to the pain-staking business of taking a good look at ourselves with the intention of seeking the real truth of who we are. We stray from it because it can often be uncomfortable and will most assuredly lead to a discovery that we would rather leave hidden. Instead, we get involved in the lives of others. We spend our days seeking an answer for their aches and analyzing their wounds. We have become masters at keeping people's attention off of us and the injuries in need of immediate attention. We have built a façade that hides our own deep pain.

Making a decision to administer a "self-checkup" is an act of courage. It means that we submit our deep inner lives to the searing laser beam gaze of the Holy Spirit. Using the surgical instrument of the Scriptures, He penetrates past our facades and pierces into the depths of who we really are. His gaze brings to light the deep internal hemorrhages that need immediate divine care. He offers healing yet we must choose to come to the Word, allow the Spirit to expose us and submit to His prescription for healing.

He offers a check up to anyone who will allow Him the opportunity. He will come to not only disclose the problem but offer a solution of salvation to save you from that which might be slowing depleting you of life.

Come. Examine yourself and really live.