Power in the Blood

 We’re a month in from receiving cool gadgets for Christmas, and many of you have probably been guinea pigs for those “sharable” gifts. Growing up I recall a friend of my great-aunts who brought his new diabetic testing kit to Christmas dinner.  He considered it miraculous that once a drop of your blood was squeezed onto a strip of paper he could tell if you were a diabetic or not without the necessity of med school.  He wanted to test everyone but as the twinkle in his eye bounced off the pricking needle in his shaking hands, we all shrank into the furniture.  Finally a couple adults reluctantly volunteered as tribute. It was a Christmas I can never forget.
  This year my son received a diagnostic scanner for cars that when plugged in will tell everything malfunctioning on that vehicle. Imagine if we had one of those for our soul.  When our “check engine” light came on (and it would daily), we could immediately determine what needs worked on.  Some things require much work but occasionally the fix is simple.  Have you ever noticed how often an electronic problem can be fixed with unplugging it and then plugging it back in or flipping the right switch?
     While visiting Jeff’s mom in NJ we set up her Christmas tree and Christmas village with several ceramic houses and many many electrical cords. All was well until we decided to vacuum up the last of the fallen pine needles. When we turned on the vacuum cleaner everything went black. We “blew a fuse”.  And then later on the farm in Hacker Valley, we again tripped the breaker when the circuit panel just couldn’t handle lights from 25 Christmas trees and the air compressor needed to blow up a flat tire. We were flipping breakers back and forth like our well-caffeinated friends who got an espresso machine for Christmas. The power source is critical.
     I’m not a trained expert but being raised a country girl has taught me a thing or two about power.  Coal power is efficient and effective. Wood powered heat is rewarding and satisfying, speaking to a primal part of our soul.  Electric power is always appreciated but is not always reliable in the mountains. The power of prayer is undoubtedly real. Many strong little communities are held together by prayer chains, and it shows. Powerball is not actually power-full so don’t let it fool you. If you’re given the opportunity to take a power nap in the middle of the day between cutting filth and gathering wood, take it. And in church, when my Pap sang “There is power, power, wonder-working power in the precious blood of the lamb”, he meant it.
     There’s an incredible power source that people sometimes overlook but it sure needs tapped into! Multiple scientific studies have been done involving scripture connected with neuroscience. One tested people of all ages who read the Bible four or more times a week. After three days they noticed a transformation happening. Loneliness went down 30 percent. Bitterness went down 43 percent. Watching pornography decreased 60-100 percent. Anger went down 32 percent.  Yes, Grandpa Nelson, there is power in the blood of the Lamb! 
     Let’s challenge ourselves in 2024  to read more of the Bible. May it clean out some cobwebs in our internal breaker box, and keep us grounded so the power of God can work through us as we understand more fully the sacrifice of our Lord.  The stakes are higher than at a layman’s diabetic testing party.  Jesus gave His life and  shed His blood in our place so we could have life everlasting.  “But if we walk in the light, as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus His Son cleanses us from all sin.” (1 John 1:7)  That’s a light that will never go out and a gift worth sharing!

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