LAYING DOWN THEIR LIVES . . .

LAYING DOWN THEIR LIVES . . .

Have you ever considered how amazing your body is -- the one that God
created? Did you ever stop to think that while you are sitting here
reading today's Freedom Fighter, every cell in your body is doing
exactly what God created it to do? Everything is working with precision:
your heart is beating. Blood is being pumped throughout your body. And
then there is the work of the blood cells that is going on unbeknownst
to you.

Dr. Mark Swenson writes that "the red blood cells [in your body] are
workhorses, but the real heroes swimming through the circulatory system
are the white blood cells and platelets. They die for us. They were born
ready to die.

Platelets are half the size of the red blood cells and survive only a
matter of days. This is why we must continually produce five million new
platelets every second. They are critical for the clotting of the blood,
rushing to the site of injury and heroically throwing their tiny bodies
into the hole.

The white blood cells are no less self-sacrificing. They are a vital
link in our quest for daily survival. Not to be paranoid about it, but
there are billions of microbes continuously seeking to do us harm. This
is why the body must have ready fifty billion white blood cells standing
guard. These are the active duty forces. But in the reserves, hiding in
the bone marrow, we have a backup force one hundred times as large
should the need arise. We ought rightfully to be grateful for this
profound immunologic margin.

The skin and mucosa of the respiratory track are the first line of
defense against microbial attack. Yet should any infectious agents
breech the outer defense, the immune system takes over. Here the white
blood cells is an important player.

Next time you get a sore throat, swollen lymph nodes, or inflammation,
remember your body is doing battle on your behalf. Don't be irritated by
the fever or discomfort. Instead just think about the billions of white
blood cells that are dying so that you may live.

These cells have one mission, one purpose: to give their lives in
defense of ours. 'Greater love has no one than this,' Jesus said, 'that
he lay down his life for his friends.' Jesus did it for us; our white
blood cells and platelets do it for us. Why do we doubt His vigilance
when He so faithfully performs it on the microscopic level every day of
our lives? The evidence is overwhelming -- HE SEES, HE CARES, AND HE
DEFENDS!" We are fearfully and wonderfully made! -- from ONE MINUTE OF
MARGIN published by NavPress.

I trust that this truth encourages your heart today!

Attention Colony grads . . . visit our website and see pictures of your
fellow graduates. Go to www.americaskeswick.org and click on the
addiction box. When you get to the addiction page, click other resources
and visit the alumni page. We'd love to have YOUR picture too. You can
email it to me at bwelte@americaskeswick.org.