As part of my annual medical exam, I had a complete lab work-up. I must say that the results were stunning and especially revealing.

Apart from the usual glucose and cholesterol screening, every vitamin or mineral supplement was detailed in the blood work by type and amount. I was amazed that the details of my diet could be found in these results. Healthy or unhealthy, it is all there in the blood.

I was immediately struck by the Scripture: “The life of the flesh is in the blood.” (Leviticus 17:11). The more I thought about my results, the more I realized that I was a turtle in understanding the principle.

Blood brotherhood or friendship has been used for centuries to denote inter-transference of blood. The medical procedure of blood transfusion is a common occurrence in which donated blood is provided through an IV line. A transfusion can save a life when the patient has severe blood loss due to injury, disease, or other disorders.

Similarly, everything we think, say, or do is exposed. Nothing is ever hidden. To name a few, if we are mean-spirited and angry, we become resentful—our blood pressure is affected. If we are ungrateful or invite bitterness and pride to set up shop in our attitude—depression and mental breakdown may occur. If we are lazy, we become irresponsible, unsuccessful, and a “blame shifter.” Chemical imbalance, hard facial features, blood diseases, and lowered immune systems are frequently consequences of inward roots or thorns that we believe are hidden from view. But they are never hidden--never.

One of the most detrimental emotions that can lacerate and harm the blood is anger. Anger is like shattered glass. It can not only harm any person who gets struck by the glass, but you, yourself, become a perfect specimen for disability. When anger becomes your daily companion, it displays an evil bag of tricks: vindictive personal feelings, personal revenge, screaming, cursing, rage, striking/beating, destroying. It becomes the drum beat for greater strife and division. If anger is one of the regular displays of your personality, it has invaded your blood that leads to the heart. It has become the undertaker of your soul, preparing you for your exit.

In today’s environment, anger and its helpers are always waiting in the wings for their cue to take place in your life. Many people of the Bible faced the same characters and left us with unforgettable examples.

Saul’s jealousy and disloyalty gradually caused him to become angry and bitter—he was tormented by depression. (I Samuel 16:14). Eventually, his entire family was wiped out. Judas Iscariot was not only a traitor, but also a thief. His guilt-ridden soul induced him to commit suicide. (Matthew 27:3-4) David’s son, Absalom, had his brother murdered because of anger toward his brother for raping their sister. (2 Samuel 13:28-29).

Scripture instructs us to exterminate all thorns and squatters that invade the blood of the spirit, and our physical bodies. Learn to cherish your body temple and make way for the things that cleanse your blood and your spirit, e.g., love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, humility, and self-control. (Galatians 5:22-23)

Have you ever heard the expression “tough as nails?” In some cases, this expression is applied to a person who displays a fearless personality and exhibits no hesitancy in the verbal expression of their thoughts. Military drill instructors or drill sergeants are often perceived as having “no nonsense,” “tough as nails” type of personalities.

When you refer to a person as “tough as nails,” it is worth taking a moment to reflect on the process of how nails are made. Nails are made of carbon steel, and depending upon the type, contain a significant amount of carbon content. Higher-carbon steels are heated up to 400° F (200° C).

The nail begins as a carbon steel wire approximately 2.84 millimeters in diameter. The process includes cutting the wire into thinner rods, applying machine pressure to the rods, sending the nails through a nail-forming blade, and imbedding the nails into plastic rolls. Additional time is needed for cooling the residue applied to the nails. Extra steps are added to the process for making different types of nails. There are hundreds of types of nails, but they all have a purpose.

The life journey has a similar process that includes heat (agony, pain, suffering, discomfort), pressure (hardships, sorrow, unhappiness) and cooling (waiting, sadness, patience). This list sounds like a “What’s the point in my being here?” Let’s get to the good part quickly.

The answer to the question is: “Because you are growing.” Babies fall when trying to walk; children skin their knee or even break a bone while playing; young people fail a test in school; teenagers break up with their boyfriend/girlfriend. But everything changes. Babies learn to walk; children learn to participate in various team sports and perhaps win Olympic medals; teenagers graduate from college, and maybe later walk down the aisle for marriage. In other words, they learned through their gutter balls.

Men and women in the military all go through a process known as “basic training” or “boot camp.” It is a basic, intense training which helps to discipline the mind, strengthen the body, and teaches skills to save your life. This training is necessary for all our soldiers who keep us safe.

When you go to the grocery store, if you are like many of us, you look for fruits or vegetables, without brown or withered leaves, yellowed stalks or bruises. You go past these and look for the produce that looks the freshest. But sometimes it’s not possible to get completely unblemished fruit or vegetables. Sometimes they have a sale on these less than perfect items, so you buy them and take them home. You tear off the withered leaves and you cut off any bruises and you use them to make a great meal!

That is exactly what happens in our life journey. This is how God sees us. We are imperfect but useable. We are changing every day, not only physically, but we are growing spiritually within our souls. You may not understand the reason for the heat, or pressure, or the waiting when things don’t seem to be getting better. But like a nail, you are going through the process to make you strong and useable.

Each time you go through a less than positive situation, it is a nail-making moment in your life and there is a lesson to be learned. It is a great opportunity for you to exercise patience and strengthen your faith in God so you may become the person you were created to be. (James 1:4)

Many recognized experts and scientific minds have theorized there are several universal laws. Perhaps you have heard of a few and can name some of them. Examples are:

• The Law of Cause and Effect
  Modified interpretation: Negative energy out, negative energy in. Positive energy out, positive energy in.

 

• The Law of Relativity
  Modified interpretation: When you compare yourself to a thing or a person, you cloud your perspective and perception; you fail to realize that everything is neutral.

 

• The Law of Sowing and Reaping
  Biblical interpretation:
  “Don’t be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a person sows, so he will also reap.” (Galatians 6:7)
  

 
The Law of Sowing and Reaping is one law you might want to view as a primary influencer in your life journey. It parallels The Law of Cause and Effect—what kind of seed are you sowing? This combination never fails.
 
You may recall that in one of my earlier Nuggets, I mentioned the process of seed planting. Some of the influencers of seed planting are the soil, rain or water, and parasites. Seeds are alive, so when you plant a seed, you can expect a harvest.
 
There are certain conditions in which seeds thrive and bring forth a bountiful and prosperous harvest. On the other hand, seeds, thrown among the soil like rocks, will yield an unhealthy crop or a variety of weeds.
 
Our Biblical and world history are filled with an abundance of stories about kings, rulers, and leaders who reaped the harvest of the seed they sowed—David, Jezebel, and Saul among the most notable. Their seeds of lust, uncontrollable greed and power, and jealousy yielded devastating harvests. Their children and families were wiped out, and others met violent deaths or committed suicide.
 
What about our daily seed bag? Are we putting our seeds in soil that will yield a fruitful harvest? Planting seed is not always about money. It is also about using the seed God has given us to plant/invest seeds in the life of another.  
 
It’s giving someone a pair of clean socks or a blanket or giving a kind word that gives the person a sense of value and self-worth. It’s praying for our family and leaders. It’s lending a helping hand to a struggling family. How often do we volunteer at a shelter or become a counselor at a youth camp? Sowing seed is all of these and more.
 
Israel and the United States have survived as powerful nations despite the seeds of disobedience and our anti-God/anti-Christ attitudes. God’s remarkable grace has intervened throughout the United States’ and Israel’s history.
 
With the knowledge of His amazing grace, let us not lapse into selective amnesia and forget that The Law of Sowing and Reaping and The Law of Cause and Effect are irreversible. These laws work at both the national and personal levels. They work 24-hours a day, 365 (366 when there is a leap year) days a year, whether or not we know it. Some seeds take longer to germinate than others, but they will always yield a harvest.
 
If you don’t like the harvest you are reaping, you may want to consider changing not only the type of seeds you are sowing, but also the location and quality of soil into which you plant those seeds