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Article Archive |
2007
Snakebite
by Jim Morris
“It is going to be a beautiful day,” George said to himself. He grabbed his chainsaw and trudged out to the woods where he had spotted an old tree that had fallen during the last storm.
When George got to the tree he reached over the fallen trunk to move some limbs. With a sudden stab of pain, he jerked his left hand back in a flash. Two bloody puncture marks stared back at his unbelieving eyes. “Could I have been snake bit?” he wondered. He scanned the undergrowth for any signs of his attacker but found none. “I better get to the doctor quick,” he decided.
The town had a small clinic with three doctors. George went up to the receptionist showing her his throbbing hand that was swollen, purple and black. She took his name and explained their new healthcare system to him. All three doctors would examine his wound but George could pick, and pay for, only the option he liked best.
First, Doctor Sunshine called George back to his office. The doctor with a slop bucket grin gave George a slap on the back. He glanced at George's hand and said, “Man, you just got stuck by a stick and bruised yourself when you jerked your hand back. There's nothing wrong with you that some Band-Aids and aspirin won't fix!” As George went back to the waiting room, he thought, “Why is the bruise going up my arm, if its just a stick prick?”
Second, Doctor Shady called George back to his office. The doctor squinted at George's hand, and said, “Boy, you've been bitten by a black snake. It's non-poisonous. All you need to do is to put an ice pack on your hand and it'll be better.” George rubbed his arm, and wondered, “Why do I feel worse, if the snake was non-poisonous?”
Finally, Doctor Clearview called George back to his office. By now, George's pulse was racing, his eyes were blurred, fever raged, and the pain in his hand was shooting up his arm toward his heart. The doctor greeted George but then his eyes fell to the wounded hand. The doctor said, “Son, from the spacing of the puncture marks I'd say a large timber rattler got you. We need to put you in the hospital overnight, draw some blood for the toxicologist, administer the right anti-venom, and prescribe some antibiotics. We can save your life.”
What should George do? Who should he trust?
If preachers are the “doctors of the soul,” who should we trust? Some see no problems. Some see problems with wrong solutions. Others see the truth.
We have all been bitten by the Great Serpent. Jesus is the anti-venom cure for snakebite. Without Him we will die. Jesus said, “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners” (Mark 2:17).
11-28-07
# 48
