Relational Challenges of the 21st Century--Part 3--Germs, Viruses, Colds, etc.

Somewhere this past weekend, I picked up a cold. The symptoms started becoming more obvious yesterday: runny nose, scratchy throat, cough, fatigue, etc. After getting a decent night's sleep, I dropped our son off at school, caught the bus, and arrived at church for our weekly staff meeting. I felt worse and worse as it went on, as a headache joined the other symptoms.

It was nevertheless useful and good to be with my work team colleagues again today. Isaac's parents, Mike and Judy, were at lunch, as they are in town from Colorado for several days. It was good to see them meet people who are becoming a big part of Isaac's life this year.

As I've hit middle age, I've realized that I don't need to do everything at 120%, or even 100%. My friend and mentor Jerry Root talked about "good enough parenting." That idea is that he didn't need to be the perfect father, but needed to be at least what was enough at a particular point in time. It's impossible to go all out at everything. One thing I like about watching veteran athletes is that they know when they need to go all out and when to go less. They have less energy than most of their younger teammates, but often are still more productive due to better use of the energy that they do have.

Because of the cold, I wasn't at all at 100%. However, I was able to gut it through in order to do at least the minimum of what was needed. I ended up coming home earlier in the afternoon, getting in a nap (thanks to my wife), and having to cancel tonight's appointment with an insurance salesman.

My family and I are exposed to lots of germs. We live in a neighborhood and a city that have people from around the world. Our son (who also has a cold) has classmates from African, European, Asian, and North African backgrounds. So does our church. I could have caught my cold from exposure to my son, from greeting someone at our church, from breathing in someone's germs on the bus, from the changing temperatures, etc. Who knows?

Germs, viruses, colds, and illnesses are part of life. This doesn't mean that I think that sickness is inevitable and that we can't do anything about it. However, one needs to develop a "down-time" strategy for those seasons and days when one (or one's spouse, children, co-workers, ministry partners, etc.) are not at 100%. This can be hard, particularly for those like me who are more driven and perfectionistic.

I definitely believe that the spiritual gift of healing is still for today. Several of the work team members voluntarily prayed for me and I requested another one to do so after lunch. I had faith that God could and would heal me from the cold and headache. But for some reason, the cold is still with me, although the headache is gone.

Germs, viruses, and illnesses can actually build relationship if they help create or strengthen the bond between the sick person and the care giver. One of my favorite childhood memories is of staying home when I was sick and having my mother take care of me. Pregnancy (which is technically an "illness" according to nearly all insurance plans) has generally helped strengthen the bond between me and my wife, as I have had to be more attentive to her physical and other needs as her energy level goes up and down. Being sick can help us learn to depend on others in a positive way, or to be there for those who suffer. It can also draw us into an initial or a deeper relationship with the Divine Healer.

Fortunately, the germs that I'm putting on this computer keyboard won't be passed through the Internet to you who read this. Your prayers for getting over this cold are appreciated.