Pain, Thirst, and Lazarus

I had to go to the hospital emergency room yesterday because of an awful pain in my lower back, side and abodomen.

It was the kind of pain that takes over your whole body and mind.

In other words, it was the kind of pain that made it impossible to think about anything else other than how much pain I was in...

...and made me act in ways that were uncharacteristic.

Like beg my wife to make the doctors give me something for the pain.

Like beg the nurse to make the doctors give me something for the pain.

Like beg the doctors to PLEASE give me something for the pain.

You know you are not yourself when two different nurses in the emergency room ask you to "please be quiet."

Later, I tried to explain to them that, as a preacher, I am a verbal person and so I verbalize everything, even my pain!

The other problem I had to deal with was a thirst unlike any thirst I had ever known before.  Maybe it was the stress...maybe it was the pain...maybe it was the physical problem I was experiencing.  Maybe it was a combination of "all of the above."

I don't know.

I only know that I was in excruciating pain, and I was excruciatingly thirsty.

Here's the rub...the doctors and nurses would not allow me anything to drink...at all.  They needed to run certain tests on me that required I not drink.  There was also the possibility that I might have needed surgery, and I couldn't drink beforehand.

So, what does a person do when they feel like they are dying of thirst, but no one will allow them to have a drink?

They try to make a deal.

At least, that is what I did.

I knew my wife had a bottle of water in her purse.  I tried every trick I knew to convince her to give me a drink.

I told her my tongue was sticking to the roof of my mouth.

I told her I would do anything she wanted me to do around the house.

I told her I would love her more than ever.

I told her I couldn't swallow.

I told her I was dying.

It all fell on a deaf ear.

She was having nothing to do with it.  And I was getting no water from her.

Basically, I was desperate.  I just wanted some relief...any kind of relief...from my pain and my thirst.

And it made me think about a story in the Bible.  The story of a rich man, and a poor man named Lazarus.

Lazarus was a beggar who "longed to eat what fell from the rich man's table."  The rich man "was dressed in purple and fine linen and lived in luxury every day."

One day, both of them died.

The rich man went to hell and Lazarus went to heaven.

Here is how the scene is described in Luke, chapter 16...

"In hell, where he was in torment, (the rich man) looked up and saw Abraham far away, with Lazarus by his side.  So (the rich man) called to him, 'Father Abraham, have pity on me and send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in the water and cool my tongue, because I am in agony in this fire.'

But Abraham replied, 'Son, remember that in your lifetime you received your good things, while Lazarus received bad things, but now he is comforted here and you are in agony.  And besides all this, between us and you a great chasm has been fixed, so that those who want to go from here to you cannot, nor can anyone cross over from there to us.'"

Let me tell you, after my experience in the ER last night, I can definitely relate to the rich man in hell.

His unrelenting agony and thirst perfectly describe the way I felt.

But, in reality, what I experienced was only a trifle compared to what people in hell actually go through there.  Their pain is much greater than mine.  Their thirst is much greater than mine.

After last night, I can hardly get my head around that thought.  To think that anyone's pain and thirst could be worse than I knew...

...not just for a few hours like me, but for eternity.  It is just too much for me to handle.

In my case, I had compassionate doctors and nurses trying to help me, and a loving wife.

People in hell have Satan.

Enough said.

It boggles my mind.

And it convinces me that I want NOTHING TO DO WITH HELL!

Praise the Lord that I get to go where Lazarus went when I die.  I get to be with Abraham too.  All  because I have been forgiven by Jesus, my Savior, who died for me.

Will you be there too?

By the way, I did finally get some ice chips to help me with my thirst.  I did finally get some pain medication to relieve my pain.

The diagnosis was a kidney stone.

Not sure about that...but I feel much better today.  Back to normal, if there is such a thing.

I hope none of you ever has a pain like mine, a thirst like mine, or a kidney stone of your own!