I was only six or seven when
Uncle Henry and Aunt Gerry came down to Friendship, Maine for a visit. It was
summertime and Uncle Henry had this beautiful Cutlass Oldsmobile, a gold one with white
leather interior, if I remember correctly. It had power windows and a radio
with premium sound! There was a stick on the floor and even the steering wheel
tilted!
The day they arrived, I had
been suffering with such a terrible toothache in one of my back teeth. I
remember dad saying to me, “Son, if you go brush your teeth real good it might
help.” I did and it didn’t! He then told me to take a toothpick and dig into
the cavity, perhaps there is candy or something in it causing the pain! I
couldn’t find a toothpick, but I did find one of mom’s sewing needles. So I commenced
to diggin’! HOLY LIGHTNIN’ PEEKER! WEAPONS OF MASS DESTRUCTION! DID THAT EVER
HURT!! I apparently hit a nerve that sent shock waves through my little body! Then
I had this real throbbing pain worse than before that lasted the rest of the
day! I remember a voice saying to myself, “Don’t you ever let a needle enter
your mouth ever again!! I was able to go to sleep that night with an asprin
crushed and packed into the cavity.
When I awoke in the morning the
pain was gone.
We had a wonderful visit with
my Aunt and Uncle Gillen. I remember when they got ready to leave that dad said,
“We’ll not be too far behind you because we are coming up to Mars Hill next
week!” Aunt Gerry said you should let Stevie come with us and let him stay at
our place. He’ll be able to play with Kerry and Sandy! I got all excited. Mom
and dad agreed and before long I was jumping into that beautiful Oldsmobile. We
didn’t get very far from Friendship when that tooth began to ache again. Aunt
Gerry said, If it is still aching when we get to Mars Hill, I’m taking you to
my dentist to get that seen to! He may have to give you a needle for freezing! HOLY
LIGHTNIN’ SHIVERS!! I said to myself, I’M NOT GOING TO NO DENTIST! I’ve already
experienced one needle and that was enough!! I don’t recall the tooth aching
again or if it did I just ignored it and I certainly didn’t inform Aunt Gerry!
For many years I suffered with
a lot of toothaches neglecting my teeth and not taking care of them properly! I
brushed, but certainly not the way I should have. Mom and dad did take me to
the dentist when I was in my teens and at that time I had a lot of work done.
Cavities were filled and teeth were pulled but, none the less, I always dreaded
my appointment day. On the trip from Hoyt to Fredericton to Dr. Wade’s office,
I always prayed that the car would break down so I would miss the appointment.
Needless to say my teeth have been left in poor condition for many years
because of my dread of going to the dentist. Up until this year I continued to
suffer from time to time and often just tolerated the pain. I am now 54.
This year all that changed!
Just in the last few months I
have made five trips to the Dentist and next Tuesday I go again. I’m not sure
how many more trips I need to make to get all this mess resolved. But what I do
know, today, is that I have lost a fair amount of days of my life of quality
living because of tooth pain! Since these recent trips I have said to Esther so
many times, “Why have I waited so long?” Today all the bad cavities are gone
and what I notice most of all is that now, with the cold weather, I can go
outside in the cold and I feel NO PAIN!! This makes me so happy especially when
I am plowing snow!
There are people who suffer so
much pain needlessly! It may or may not be dental pain. It could be pain in
another part of your body. It could even
be the pain of a broken heart or the pain of mental anxiety or sadly, the pain
you feel when you see a family member walking a road to their own destruction
with drugs and alcohol.
I remember the song, “What a
Friend we have in Jesus” that talks about the peace we often forfeit, and the
needless pain we bear, all because we do not carry everything to God in Prayer.
I want to encourage you today
to go to a place where there is freedom from pain! I’m not talking about the
medicine chest! I’m talking about going to the One who was born in a Manger
over 2000 years ago! His Word says that He came to earth and He suffered such
pain and misery. And He did it in our place! He did it for YOU! Did you get
that? HE TOOK YOUR PLACE!
I remember in the mid 80’s
when Esther was so tormented with migraine headaches. They would literally
disable her for several days leaving her so sick and weak until one day Mildred
Moore, a lady in our church, came to the parsonage and said to her, Enough is
enough! And she prayed a simple prayer saying, “Jesus you already took the pain
for Esther when you went to the cross of Calvary and right now we accept what
you did for her and we ask that she be healed in Jesus’ Name!” My wife will
tell you that she has NEVER experienced a migraine since that day! And that was
some twenty-seven years ago!
Here is the key…..You must
decide to go to Jesus Christ just like I’ve decided to go to the dentist after
all these years. Go with FAITH in His Word and declare it! Go ahead and speak His
Word over your situation! “Lord Jesus…You bore this pain in my place and I
thank You for doing that for me! And today, by the stripes that were laid upon
your back…I KNOW I AM HEALED!!!”
You will be blessed when the
relief from pain comes and you will say just like I am saying, “WHY DID I WAIT
SO LONG?!”
