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I was hooked up to a machine for apheresis (platelets donation) at the local Red Cross center. 

Not long before, I didn’t know what a platelet was, much less that someone would want mine. Platelets are small disk-shaped bodies found in the blood of vertebraes and are also associated with clotting.

Time crept at a snail’s pace. To scratch my nose or move my arms was prohibited. I squeezed a bright-red rubber ball every five seconds so the blood could flow steadily from my left arm into the tubes of a machine before returning to my right arm.

Tensed muscles left me completely exhausted. My body tingled and shivered from the cold room and depleted calcium. After one grueling hour, the nurse asked if I could remain on the machine another hour and donate a double dose. “Your platelets are plentiful and healthy,” she added. I reluctantly complied. 

Afterward, in the recovery room, I reflected on the process of giving life and hope to a medical patient whose blood could no longer produce platelets. Hopefully, mine would flow into someone else’s veins soon after I left the center.

The spiritual analogy is richer. Christ did the same for us. His Spirit cleanses and strengthens us in discomfort, blessing others through our temporary suffering. But we must allow Him to sift out the greed, selfishness, and pity-platelets in our bodies. Sometimes, we need to hook up to the machine for a longer period so we can give a double dose. 

Our sacrifices can give hope to the hurting as Christ’s Spirit cleanses our hearts and purifies our lives.

Make a point to submit to God’s purification process.

(Photo courtesy of pixabay.)

(For more devotions, visit Christian Devotions.)