Sick with Hiccups

So this week has been interesting health-wise because, after running around for two weeks on a whirlwind Winter Break, I was ready for another vacation. There was no stopping GEKOM's classes, though, so instead of resting up for another week, I came down with some sort of head-cold thing. In some ways it's been great because there haven't been any of my usual cold systems like unbearable congestion or 24/7 runny nose, but I for several days had this awful throbbing headache that made it impossible to concentrate and now still have a sore throat that feels like a golf ball has implanted itself there. In general, these things are not big deals -- I just down the vitamin C, drink 4 gallons of water a day, and aim for at least 8 hours of sleep a day.

That was the plan last night, too, when I was getting ready for bed at 1 because I'd be waking up at 9 for school (Friday is my late-start day). Literally as soon as I turned off the lights and started toward my comfy bed, I got the hiccups. A couple things went through my mind at this point: 1) How in the world do I have the hiccups? I haven't eaten anything nor drank anything but water for hours. 2) Owww! I kid you not, my hiccups are the earth-shattering kind. And 3) Shoooot I'm going to wake up Rachael! Rach had already been asleep for a couple hours because of an early start on Friday morning, and I didn't want to be the one responsible for waking her up in the middle of the night. I tried laying down in bed for a couple minutes and holding my breath in spurts but to no avail. So I go back into the pitch-black living room and try to wait it out. At this point I was also started to get a little bit cranky because, as my kind of hiccups are normally really uncomfortable, they were even more painful with an already-sore throat. After about ten minutes of constant hiccuping, I finally give it up to God.

You might say, woah wait a minute, this is a blog about prayer? You betcha. For ten minutes I sat there uncomfortably wishing there was something I could do and thinking that hiccups weren't important enough to really pray about. Then, after those ten minutes, I came to my senses and realized I was putting God in a box, deciding for Him in what He is interested and over what He is control. Ridiculous! Who was I to decide my hiccups weren't important enough for God to cure?

At that, I closed my eyes, prayed a quick hiccupy prayer, and then in the name of Jesus commanded my hiccups to stop. And that's exactly they did. Immediately.

That, folks, is the power of prayer and the power of Jesus's name and the Holy Spirit who lives in us. I was stoked that I finally put my silly pride aside and let God take over this minor request. It was affirming, it was liberating...and it didn't hurt that I could then go to sleep.