My Mother's Day Shot in the Arm, courtesy of the Holy Spirit.

Getting what you ask for...

Over the past few weeks, God has given me just what I needed and just what I'd ask for....only on His terms.

A few weeks ago, while preparing for a field trip with my son to the National Zoo, I had a sudden overwhelming pain in my stomach. It was similar to female pain that I've had in the past when suffering with endometriosis, but I hadn't had any problems with that for about 17 years. It was somewhat different, a burning pain, almost like a small fire had been set in my lower abdomen.

I was determined to go to the zoo anyway. I'd promised Justin, we'd been looking forward to it since the beginning of the school year and I would just take two tylenol, add a few to my purse and deal with it. That is exactly what I did. But, as I walked around the zoo, I knew that something wasn't right, this was pretty intense pain. The bus ride home was excruciating. My husband, John, took me to the emergency room that evening, but they were extremely busy and we decided to go home. All night long I agonized with pain comparable to the last bit of childbirth. I went to the doctor the next day only to be told that she felt it was a female problem, most likely an ovarian cyst and that I'd need to get an ultrasound at the hospital and follow up with my OB/Gyn.

The next day I went to the hospital and had the ultrasound, but the technician couldn't see my ovaries! Huh? I knew they were there, and half-jokingly insisted that I'd never authorized for them to be removed! He recommended that I see my OB/Gyn because there was a lot of "air" in my intestines apparently blocking the view of my ovaries. So, I made an appointment and was in to see my OB/Gyn before I knew it. He found a "fluid sac" but it wasn't on my ovary, he said it looked to be an inflammation of my intestine. He suggested a strict diet regimen for two weeks which consisted of eliminating many simple carbs, and he said he was almost 100 percent sure that I'd be feeling better at the end of the two weeks. He was right.

Prior to this incident, our entire family had joined the hospital affiliated Wellness Center and I'd started working out again. I was feeling better but having trouble losing weight because I didn't have a "diet" plan. Well, now I had one, an un-realistic one, but it was a start. I clearly remembered praying for a lifestyle change for all of us in regards to better eating and exercise, so I knew in a way, this was probably an answer to prayer.

My shot in the arm, courtesy of the Holy Spirit.

Some people refer to a wake-up call, a new realization, a new understanding as a "shot in the arm". Not only did my stomach pain and change in diet foreshadow what would happen over the next few weeks, it began to prepare me to consider how I'd been abusing high carb foods for years. I realized I was addicted to the sugar rush after two weeks with out potatoes, sweets, rice and breads. I began to see that my stomach pain was self-inflicted and a consequence of a lack of self-control and temperance (moderation). In other words, gluttony and wild abandon were running my life, and consequently the lives of my children and husband.

I cried while thinking about the challenge of making changes and sticking to them...uh, that's called fortitude. I'd had some success. My kids love all kinds of fruits and vegetables and I'd switched to whole grains about a year ago, my dinners were well planned and balanced. But, I knew I also had my failures, too many high carb snacks, treats and drinks plagued our family. I prayed that somehow I could inspire my family to get on board with making a healthy lifestyle change.

Then, I had "THE" phone call from my husband. He was having chest pains and shortness of breath. Thankfully, it turned out to just be anxiety and indigestion, but it scared the bee-jeebies out of him and me too! He went to the local emergent care center, with both of us thinking he was having heart problems. In the course of the hour and a half between the start of the pain and the results of the test, my forty-one year-old husband had a lot of time to think. While praying for him, I asked God to please keep him here with me until we both grew very old and to help him to make healthy changes. John came home that evening a changed man, devoted to "getting healthier" and we talked for hours about the changes we needed to make.

My son's shot in the arm, an exercise in virtue.

Though we were both resigned that we needed to do this for ourselves and our children, we didn't become completely convinced until the diagnosis of our eight-year-old son with Type I Diabetes (insulin dependent). This cinched the deal. Justin has to have a regulated diet, he has to learn temperance, fortitude and self-control, gifts of the Holy Spirit long before he is confirmed. The alternative is death, period, that's the final answer. So, my son's cross, his challenge, his suffering will benefit us all in the long run. With each shot that I give him in the arm, I realize that it is a shot in the arm for me as well, a wake-up call to better take care of the temples of the Holy Spirit dwelling in my household. I remember thinking how odd it was that Mother's Day and Pentecost were on the same day this year. How foolish of me, mothers attempt to teach our children virtues every day. What a better job we'd do if we relied on the assistance and the gifts of the Holy Spirit more often. The gift may be delivered by a blazing, burning, fiery pain in the stomach or an alcohol swab followed by a injectible syringe delivering insulin.

Insulin is the "key" that opens the door to our cells to let sugar inside. The sugar is the energy that our body needs, it keeps us fueled, without it we become lifeless. Sometimes we need a "key" to open the door to keep us spiritually energized. The key given to us by Christ is the Holy Spirit. When we let the Holy Spirit open the door to our hearts, we can cross the threshold to Christ-like living. We embrace the virtues and turn away from the vices. We have a new Pentecost.

Mary Kidd Flemming writes for Handmaids of Mercy, The Splendor of Truth, and The Compass Rose (Parenting and Family Issues)

You may also enjoy her husband's website: Crossroads Family Center