Problem No 3: Anaemia

If This is the first time you have come to the website, you will find it easier to understand if you read the introduction on the left first, and then the previous blogs before reading this one.

Symptoms and cause

Anaemia can have many causes:  
Iron deficiency, poor diet, malabsorbtion, defective bone marrow, haemorhagging

Iron deficiency – In the human body, oxygen is taken from the lungs, where it binds with the hemoglobin in the red blood cells, and as the blood is pumped around the body it provides the body with all the oxygen needed when hemoglobin levels are normal.  When a patient is anemic there are too few red blood cells or less hemoglobin than is necessary for normal life and the result is lethargy, feeling faint, and becoming easily breathless.

    

Iron is the main ingredient for the hemoglobin of red blood cells, and the reason for iron deficiency anaemia can be both dietary – malnutrition or the lack of ability to absorb iron, or the loss of blood.  The church is certainly suffering from malnutrition (covered later on) but it is also seems to lack the ability to absorb  vital biblical truths which the Holy Spirit is able to impart to God’s  people so that the Body of Christ will be strong and healthy. 

Many fellowships and local churches recognize the Holy Spirit’s vital role in revealing the need of salvation to us leading us on the path of repentance and new life, spiritual growth is encouraging the church rejoices, but then may come that plateau of spiritual growth.  For a while it is considered acceptable in order to consolidate the spiritual growth already made, but if left unaddressed the individual Christians which make up the local church will begin to exhibit weakness, lethargy, fainting along the way and shortness of breath as they gasp for the Holy Spirit.  His work is hindered and he is unable to refresh and renew every part of Christ’s body.   

Malnutrition and malabsorption in the spiritual realm  is noticed, not only when Christians stop growing, but when they no longer want to absorb the vital nutrients that bring both sustenance and growth to all.   What does this mean in the Christian life?   Malabsorption, or the inability to absorb the nutrients from a healthy diet - During the week reading and meditating on God’s  word is vital for spiritual growth, absorbing the words, directives, commands, encouragement and guidelines which the Holy spirit reveals to us.  Listening to the teaching and preaching of God’s Word.  Pastors, preachers, teachers, servants of God who have faithfully sought God’s face to bring a sumptuous feast of spiritual food for the hungry crowds may often find their listeners clock watching, nodding off, staring with the “glazed over look” of folk who really don’t understand or care what you are saying.  They are just doing their duty of attending a Sunday service, but the thought of coffee and biscuits that follow, or the soup lunch out the back, or the roast lunch that awaits them at home is all the food they are interested in right now.  The spiritual feast prepared for them may be enjoyed by a few but the majority of folk attending the Sunday services may have been just as happy with the fast food menu.  

So many Christians have the inability to absorb the rich spiritual meat just as Paul found in the Corinthian church.   “I gave you milk, not solid food, for you were not yet ready for it. Indeed, you are still not ready.” 

1 Corinthians3:2  

And the writer to the Hebrews:  “we have much to say about this, but it is hard to explain because you are slow to learn.  In fact, though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you the elementary truths of God's word all over again. You need milk, not solid food!  Anyone who lives on milk, being still an infant is not acquainted with the teaching about righteousness but solid food is for the mature, who by constant use have trained themselves to distinguish good from evil.  Therefore let us leave the elementary teaching about Christ  and go on to maturity.   

Hebrews 5:11-6:1        

So many Christians throughout the world have the inability to absorb the nutrients from rich spiritual meat and almost from the beginning if they have survived they have survived on spiritual milk.