She cut my face open four times last Wednesday, leaving a large wound beside my nose, plenty of stitches, and a black eye. “She” is a dermatologist, and the procedure is called Mohs surgery, which is a treatment for skin cancer. Each time I was called to the cutting room, the doctor would slice off a portion of my skin and then send me back to the waiting room while it was examined for cancer. Three times I was told, “We need to take a little bit more.” All of those “little bits” added up to a good-sized hole.
Please know that even though my face hurts, I am not complaining. This was a face-saving operation. The objective was to preserve as much of my “handsome” as possible while eradicating all of my “ugly.” This seems to take longer as my skin gets older. Skin cancer that is ignored can become life threatening. Each cut the doctor made was carefully mapped, measured, and tested to make sure that the entire cancer was removed. Finally, after four cuttings, my face was sewn up and I was sent home to rest.
The precision of Mohs surgery reminds me of the Holy Spirit’s work of sanctification. This is an ongoing procedure in which sin is removed bit by bit from my life.
2 Kings 5 tells the story of Naaman, the commander of the Syrian army, who had leprosy, which is not the same as skin cancer, but is a disease of the skin. Naaman appealed to Israel’s prophet, Elisha, for help and was given this cure: “Go wash yourself seven times in the Jordan, and your flesh will be restored, and you will be cleansed.” (2 Kings 5:10 NIV)
As I compare my four cuttings to Naaman’s seven washings, I wonder why it was not all done at once. Of course, it was God who was doing the healing, and not the seven baths, but God did use the baths to send a message. The number seven is important in the Bible as it signifies holiness and perfection. Each time Naaman would bathe, he would come closer to wholeness, closer to purity, and closer to God. Each time my face was cut, I also came closer to wholeness. Although I’m grateful that I only needed four treatments instead of seven, I am reminded that neither the dermatologist nor the Holy Spirit is finished with me.
Before I underwent Mohs surgery, I had to sign a consent form. Does the Holy Spirit have your consent to operate on you?
Don- I was with my mother when she had this done. Before her dermatologist sewed her up he turned to me and gave me a lecture about what I must do to prevent this from happening to me. He was not my doctor. But he chose to be that day.
Jean, When I was younger, we thought that a good tan was healthy and that the purpose of suntan lotion was to act like butter in the pan and help us brown faster. Now we pay for our ignorance. We may claim to be ignorant of sin as well, but the cost is still the same. Thank God for evangelists like your mother’s dermatologist who are bold to speak hard truths.