The Arm!

By Michael K. Farrar, O.D.

© God’s Breath Publications

Once in college, I had a very strange and frightening experience one night. I had gone to bed and was having a pretty good night sleep as far as I could tell. For some reason, I came out of my deep sleep and was in that zone which lies between subtle awareness and unconscious sleep. I seemed to be aware that I was in bed, but there was something odd. I wasn’t sure why I felt uncomfortable, but as I moved my hand into a more comfortable position, I felt something! I was semi‑awake and in my stupor attempted to determine what I had brushed up against with my hand. It was soft and smooth and somewhat warm. As I carefully moved my hand against the object, I noticed that it was elongated, somewhat like an arm…. AN ARM!!!! I froze. Was there someone in bed with me? I attempted to gather my wits as best I could, still being groggy from sleep. I was afraid to move for possibly if I did, I might awaken whoever was in bed with me, assuming they were alive. I lay there for several minutes trying to determine what to do. I decided the only thing I could do, was to jump out of bed and confront the intruder. I purposed in my mind how I would do this without getting tangled in the blankets and falling on my face. I visualized the process and then made my move. I jumped out of bed, all 200lbs 6’4” of me. I turned in mid‑air as only James Bond could do and looked into the bed to determine who my midnight visitor was.

As I stood there in the middle of the room, I saw no one in the bed. Then I noticed a strange thing, my left arm was dangling by my side, limp. I couldn’t move it and reached over with my right arm to grasp the smooth, soft, elongated appendage. All of a sudden I felt a tingling sensation in my “dead” arm. It had fallen asleep and had masqueraded as my unknown bedfellow.

Well you might ask what the moral of this embarrassing story is. Scripture makes analogies between the Body of Christ and the human body. It says in I Corinthians 12:25‑26 that, “There should be no division in the body, but that its parts should have equal concern for each other. If one part suffers, every part suffers with it; if one part is honored, every part rejoices with it.” Just as my arm had gone asleep and ceased its ability to function, sometimes members of our own Church Body fall asleep spiritually and cease to use their talents and spiritual gifts. When this happens we all suffer. If my arm had remained asleep, I could basically be classified as a one‑armed man and handicapped. I would be unable to do many things that I enjoy and would have to compensate with much work to overcome such impairment. My whole body would pay the cost of the loss of a single arm. Do you see how important it is for us all, in the Body of Christ, to seek to serve one another and glorify our Father, by using our talents and gifts.