Yesterday, I had a doctor’s appointment that brought relief to the question of ‘what if?’ in my mind.
Around a month ago, I decided to get a health check with blood tests to see if I was lacking in anything because I had been so tired. I had a feeling I was going to be told yet again that I had to change my lifestyle, but wanted to get things checked anyway to be sure.
The blood results came back and my white blood cell count was just over what it should have been.
I immediately thought the worst, although my doctor reassured me the reading could have been because I was fighting a virus. Esther and Maggie had had the chicken pox consecutively the previous month, so who knows whether my body was fighting that or something else. To be safe, I got another blood test, but was asked to wait a few weeks.
When I hear anything to do with white blood cells it’s not hard to think the worst. I jump to the wrong conclusions. I asked my doctor if I could get another ultrasound on my breasts despite being given the all clear two years ago.
I wanted to be sure everything was checked. What if things had developed in the last two years? Maybe that was the reason for the higher than usual white blood cell count?
I had the ultrasound last week and a lot of time was spent taking images of my right breast. This concerned me and I had to settle my mind.
Thankfully, my appointment yesterday confirmed everything was ok. My white blood cell count had gone down (so I obviously was fighting a virus!) and the nodules in my right breast were the same size as last time.
When I got into the car, I rang Jacob, relieved about the results, but I also chided myself for jumping to the wrong conclusions.
The mind can run away with itself with ‘what ifs?’ can’t it? It’s a battle to control the mind at times. It can go off on a tangent and create scenarios that will possibly never be. I know it’s important to trust God through whatever circumstance we come face to face with. Clearly it’s a lesson I’m still learning.
Jumping to the wrong conclusions didn’t help me. It was unnecessary to worry until I had all the facts. And nothing could have been done until the test results came in. Why do I worry about things I don’t have control over?!
The same can be said when we judge others and jump to the wrong conclusion about their behavior. There is often a reason or another story that we don’t see. Whenever I’ve jumped to the wrong conclusion with someone and I’ve talked to them about it, usually I’ve been the one in the wrong and I’ve had to apologise. Sometimes what we see is not a true picture of what is really going on. And this verse in The Message explains just that.
Wherever you find yourself this week, take a lesson from my experience and don’t jump to the wrong conclusions until you have all the facts. And if anything is bothering you health wise, get it checked out before your mind starts telling you morbid things that are incorrect.
Always live with hope and the belief that every day is going to be a good day (a reminder for me too!). Expect the best outcomes in all situations.
