Question:
Would god approve of surgery?
I have friends and family that believe that this is against the word of god to alter what god gave you. If it isn't medically necessary. I do believe that god can supernaturally change my body but, I also believe god uses this surgery as a tool. Why else would he give man the ablity to concieve how to do it?Some one help!!!!! — Adrian W. (posted on May 8, 2003)
May 8, 2003
I agree w/you. God gives the dr's the ability to help those in need. If
you've prayed about it and God has given you peace w/your decision, then
don't let what other people say bother you. Good luck.
— Bridget J.
May 8, 2003
But, for the morbidly obese, it is medically necessary. If we do not lose
weight, one of those co-morbidities would end up killing us. Maybe not
as fast as a ruptured appendix would, but eventually and before our time.
<p>
If God didn't approve of the surgery, would he have given the talent to the
surgeons to be able to perform this surgery?
— John Rushton
May 8, 2003
The problem with this line of reasoning is, just as you indicate, if God
didn't want this surgery done because it's against His design, why then
would the surgery exist? All sorts of other analogies come to mind -- if
you break your arm, do you leave it broken because God intended it to be
that way (since He let you break it), or do you have it set? If open-heart
surgery can save your life, do you have it, or do you say, God made my
heart this way, who am I to change it? If an operation can make a blind
man see, do you do it, or say, God meant for him to be blind, leave it be?
I know there are religions that are very much opposed to medical treatments
in general, for principled reasons that I don't agree with (but do respect)
-- however, it sounds as if perhaps your relatives have singled out this
procedure and made this argument, when they might not apply that same
argument to other situations. If that's the case, you're facing
garden-variety family opposition to (and worry about) WLS, not anything to
do with God. If your family believes in treatments for heart disease,
cancer, etc., then their reasoning here is hard to follow. Maybe if you
can get them more educated about the surgery, they won't be so worried
about you. Good luck!!
— Suzy C.
May 8, 2003
I am certain he does not approve of the way one feeds their selves before
surgery.As we all know, we should be eating to keep healthy, eat to live,
not live to eat as we have heard many times.This surgery allows me to do
just that, and I thank God that it is out there to help us.
— Marie A.
May 8, 2003
I agree with Bridget! Also, is it wrong for someone to have an artificial
limb? Or an artificial heart? Or someone else's heart or lungs
transplanted into them? That is also "reconstructing what God gave
you", but most people would consider a heart or lung transplant a
"gift" from God saving someone's life. Well, wls is the same --
it is saving your life. YOU come to terms with it between yourself and God
and do what YOU feel is right. Those who think wls is "wrong"
may just be uninformed, because I bet they would NEVER ask you that
question if you were getting ready to go in for a liver transplant. Some
say this surgery is "elective", but I don't believe it is -- if
your weight is going to take your life eventually, then this is life-saving
surgery. Obesity is a disease. Don't let others sway what your heart
tells you. Good luck!
— beeda
May 8, 2003
Okay, I know I'm going out on a limb here by first of all, paraphrasing the
Bible, and secondly piecing these couple of things together...but isn't
there a scripture that says your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit?
And another that says gluttony is a sin? And yet another that says if your
hand causes you to sin cut it off...an eye, pluck it out...for it is far
better to enter into eternal life (heaven), eseentially missing parts than
to allow yourself to continue in your sin...and perhaps fall away from yoru
faith all together and spend eternity in hell? I know most people don't
think of food as being a sinful addiction...but it's just a thought...and
sometimes, you just got to do, what you got to do. I don't know about
anyone else, but for me this has been a truly freeing experience as I no
longer lust after food and am no longer a slave to it.
— eaamc
May 8, 2003
I believe that God has lead me to this surgery, without it I will die, and
God wants me to be around a while longer, I am not finished on this earth.
I had two strokes back in 1998, and God let me survive those strokes that
could have taken my life and with a very small disability. I have told my
family, if I do not make it though the surgery, it is in God's hands, and
God will guide my surgeons hands. People can believe what they want this is
a free country, but when it comes down to it, you are the one that is
talking to God about your surgery, Let him lead you, stay strong, you are
worth it, and he wants you to have this surgery, because he has a plan for
you.
— cindy
May 8, 2003
God gives us free will to do what we think is right. WLS is not against the
10 comandments, the golden rule or Jesus' rule "Love thy neighbor as
you love yourself"
— Robert L.
May 8, 2003
Gluttony is a sin. I believe God would want me to be healthy and live a
productive life rather than killing myself with food.
— Sarahlicious
May 8, 2003
Read Proverbs 18:9 in the Amplified Bible
it reads:Proverbs 18
9He who is loose and slack in his work is brother to him who is a destroyer
and [1] he who does not use his endeavors to heal himself is brother to him
who commits suicide.
This is the Word of God clearly stating to use what He already made
available to improve your health. After all, God did not make you fat, that
was your mind playing tricks on you (and we all know who wages war on your
mind as it is the battlefield.) So take heart and know that God made a
provision along time ago on the issue of obesity. That Word from God was
what made me decide to take this HUGH step and pursue WLS.
If you still have doubts, as I once had...The Holy Spirit reminded me to
put put no other gods before the Lord. In my case, that god was food. I
planned everything around food. I thought about it constantly. I thought
about what I was gonna eat. When I was gonna eat it. How much I was gonna
eat and where I was gonna eat it...and most of us became morbidly obese
because we let food consume a majority of our thoughts. It is funny that we
used food as a coping and control mechanism and it actually controlled us
to the point to where it was visable.
Therefore, do not let the deceiver fool you by putting food first any
longer. Also, don't let people fool you, especially uninformed folk who do
not know jack about WLS or more importantly, folk who do not know what the
WORD OF GOD SAYS!
Jesus said, "...if your hand--even if it is your stronger hand[5:30
Greek [your right hand.] ] --causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it
away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your
whole body to be thrown into hell." (Matt 5:30) (Also Matt 18:8 and
Matt 9:43)
This was another Word from God to me, that whatever causes you to sin,
(eating gluttonous amounts of food, lusting after food...lusting, meaning
having to have it now, & selfishly eating food, and most importantly
abusing the temple of the Holy Spirit that does not belong to you(1 Cor
6:19)... so keep it healthy! Health is truly a gift from God! He has made
so many provisions through medicine and technology. Who do you think gives
man ideas to come up with these types of techniques?...lol
Anyway, don't be fooled! The enemy is a liar!
Email me if you wanna talk, I'm not trying to throw Scripture at you, just
hoping to shed light your situation as it was once mine. Well feel free to
email me anytime. Keep the Faith and wait on Your victory through Christ
Jesus! Peace and God Bless!!!
— Shayla527
May 8, 2003
I have prayed to God to help me in my battle with my weight. When I was
thinking about having the surgery,I prayed to God to give me a sign that
this is what I should do. Belive it or not a member from church had it
done, then several people who I had not seen in a long while came into my
life and they were thinner ... all because of the surgery. I belive God
put these people in front of me again after many years of not being in
touch with them to let me know... it is ok...I want to serve God and with
my weight.. I was serving less and less because I was too tired or could
not do much. I know I can serve God with more energy than I had before.
— Rhonda S.
May 8, 2003
I too stuggled with this for a while. I took it question to prayer and
received my answer in the peace I felt concerning the topic. I felt God
gave us this tool, just as he has given other medicine, open heart surgery,
etc. Pray for the answer and for the others questioning your decision that
they may find the same peace in your decision.
— Laura B.
May 8, 2003
Gluttony is a sin. Being a victim of a fatal disease is not. Would these
same folks forbid the setting of a broken leg, treating of diabetes,
removal of a defective gallbladder or appendix? It'd be great if we could
treat our disease other than with surgery, but so far, this is the best
thing we've got. I also faced that with a few in my church who some how
think that surgery takes the place of the "sufferin' &
starvin'" they think is more morally correct. Well, I'm here to tell
ya, surgery is just another tool in the toolbox of dealing with my fatal
disease. I can keep it in remission with a good surgery, PLUS being on
guard against ever falling into the trap of thinking I can ever be
"normal". I stick with the formula that got me to a healthy
weight, and to some it might appear that any restriction is "sufferin'
& starvin'" and then it's OK for me to be thin. ??? Go figure.
— vitalady
May 8, 2003
Would God approve a heart valve by-pass? I say yes, but what do I know?!
— msmaryk
May 8, 2003
God made a man blind from birth. Jesus made the blide man see....and i
don't think God got made at Jesus! lol
— franbvan
May 8, 2003
I am a children's pastor and I believed it was a gift from God to finally
get the right kind of insurance that would cover surgery. If you are
overweight enough to qualify for surgery then most likely it is medically
necessary and will only get more so as you age and/or gain weight. Besides
you are to take care of the temple God gave you and the bible does not say
with the exception of wls.
— Kristi T.
May 8, 2003
Adrian, the question should be, do you approve of the surgery, your the one
that has to live with yourself for the rest of your life......but to answer
your question, i beleive in God and I beleive in medicine and certain they
beleive in the surgery, you put the two together and look at all these
healthy happy people who have been givin a second chance at a healthy
life...good luck
— Deanna Wise
May 8, 2003
Before my surgery, I also referred to the scripture that Shayla quoted. It
was the enemy that caused me to sin (gluttony). The Lord provided a way
out. He wants us to be free. I am now free.
— Cheri M.
May 8, 2003
Listen to the Professor of Theology (in the making... :-) )...No where in
the bible does it tell us not to seek medical treatment for health issues.
God wants us to be healthy. He wants us to do His work...and if we are ill
(and being obease...we are ill) we cannot. God does want us to
suffer...HELLO...He sent Jesus to do that suffering for us over 2000 years
ago. God isn't going to just zap the weight off, though I personally have
prayed He would. I'm sure we all have at some point. I agree totally that
God uses medical treatments, medications, surgery to help us. Think about
it...God gave some the gift to heal...why would He do that if we weren't
meant to be healed? Tell your family that you have prayed about it.(i'm
sure you have) Explain to them that God uses this surgery to help people
just like He would with a triple by-pass or an emergency c-section.
You mentioned if it isn't medically nessessary...Two points to address
there...The first being that God isn't like an insurance company. lol. He
understands our wants and needs better then anyone else, including
ourselves. If this surgery is needed for something other then a medical
treatment, like for example...someone is obease and is doing it to PREVENT
a future of obesity co-morb...or some other reason...they should of course,
pray. Talk to God about the choices they have and why they feel this
surgery is the best road to take. This surgery in general is NOT given to
those who don't meet certain critieria. A 150 lb 5'6" women can't
walk into a doctor's office and say she's self paying and wants this
surgery...because she doesn't need it. She isn't obease. If your doctor's
have approved you or are in the process of doing so, you can bet that there
is a reason, even if it is to prevent the future problems from coming up.
Trust that God understands what you need. And accept that some people will
never agree with this surgery.
— Renee B.
May 9, 2003
God gave the lepers a very bad disease but sent his son, Jesus who cured
them. Give me a break. Tell your family to leave God alone and let you
make up your own mind!!! If you ever need to talk I am here!
— Regina C.
May 9, 2003
These dingbats who say these things never ceise to amaze me. They always
throw "God" into the equalion. LOL THEY WOULD BE THE FIRST ONES
TO "CHANGE WHAT GOD CREATED (?)" if "THEY" were the
ones in pain. They are manipulative buttheads. Ignore them. But as far as
"changing God's creation"... Jesus sinned! He healed people who
were blind and lame from birth. What a rotten sinner he was to do such a
kind and compassionate thing. People like these so called friends of
yours... these "compasonate, manipultive dingbats" who THINK they
know God's will for OTHER PEOPLE (you don't want to know what THEY do in
secret!), are the very reason I quit church 20 years ago. Who needs
"their compasion". I'll go with the sinner Jesus, who changed
God's creation to help those in need. He has the "true" religion.
;)
— Danmark
May 9, 2003
To the original poster, this is my suggestion: pray for the peace you need
in helping you to make the decision about whether or not WLS is for you.
And while you're at it, pray that God allow those around you to see that
what you're doing is the right thing for you and for Him.
To the poster who said that Jesus was a sinner -- you are mistaken -
because Jesus was without sin and the only being to walk this earth without
sin. And he did not "change" God's creation -- as he IS God and
we are all His creation. Forgive me for butting in there, but I felt it
needed some clarification.
Good luck with your surgery and with your family and friends. I know they
can be difficult if they don't understand the surgery. Just remember that
all things are possible through Christ.
— Cheryl M.
May 9, 2003
Don't even get me started... The type of people who adhere so strictly to
harmful religious dogma then try to foist it off on others are evil in my
opinion. If you personally believe in a god, which is all that should
matter to you, then do what you think is right. There are always
narrow-minded zealots out there who think they know what is right for you.
Don't let them tell you anything about how to run your life! JMHO.
— [Deactivated Member]
May 9, 2003
Talk about flash backs! I went thru the same thing with certain members of
my family preop. I was born and raised, and still am christian. My family
are staunch FreeWill Baptists. I was told by a certain nameless family
member that he didn't feel that is was right, and that it was against God's
will, and that he would pray that He would put stumbling blocks in my path,
and that God had a tendency to listen to him, and grant his prayers. I'm
now a little over 2 weeks post op and down 20 lbs. It's wrong to try to use
religon to intimmidate or bully. You mention it's wrong to alter something
God gave you unless medically necessary. I would have to agree with that.
There is altering just for the heck of it, and then there is altering it
because it's necessary. I looked at your page, and you state your bmi is
46. I would think with a bmi that hight, that this procedure IS medically
necessary. God has given man the knowledge and skill to preform this
procedure. If your doctor has consented to treat you, and is working with
the insurance to get you approved, then I would say the doctor thinks it's
necessary too. Look at it this way. Over 30000 people die from obesity, or
obesity related problems. Obesity is a DEADLY DISEASE. You are making a
decision to not be one of the possible statistics. Do you think that God
would punnish you for trying to improve the quality and quantity of YOUR
life? Before I had mine, I made a list of the pros and cons of being obese,
and a list of pros and cons of having this surgery. Whenever I start
feeling down about my decision, I look at both lists, and think I did this
for me to make my life better. Faith is a wonderful thing. It helped me get
where I am now, but God does truly help those who help themselves. Sorry
about the soap box answer, but it is something I feel very strongly about.
Good luck, God bless, and if you want or need to talk, please feel free to
email me at [email protected]. open distal roux-n-y 4/24/03 down 20#
— mellyhudel
May 9, 2003
Sometimes I'm just amazed at man's (or woman's, for that matter)ability to
rationalize whatever they want to rationalize. I guess since god gave man
the ability to create a nuclear bomb, he must approve of nuclear war.
— Rob P.
May 9, 2003
AT first I thought this was a joke. MY god is a kind and forgiving God.
He supports me no matter what I do. I would tell your friends and
relatives that the surgery is between YOU and YOUR GOD. Good luck! Best,
— Louise C.
May 9, 2003
Insurance approval takes long enough. Imagine how long we'd all have to
wait for surgery if we had to get God's approval also.
— Sarahlicious
May 9, 2003
Maybe it is because I am not a Cristian...maybe not.... but I think that
this question is retarted! I love Sarah B's reply about waiting for
insurance approval vs waiting for "god's" approval. Fot those of
you that are christians I think that praying for a speedy recovery is what
I would consentrate on rather than an argument that you should settle for
what you are given......I mean seriously....god also gave you common sense.
— Sarah S.
May 9, 2003
i really admire your question about whether God would approve of this
surgery. i struggled with the same question for a while untill i finally
asked a friend of mine whom i trust very much and she gave me the answer i
needed, after that i have never wondered about it again. my main motive for
wanting to have this surgery is to improve my health so i can do more for
God, i am so limited right now on what i can do. as Christians, God is a
very big part of our lives and it is very important to us what he thinks
about us. so rest in him and "Best Wishes" in everything you do.
— patricia M.
May 9, 2003
Sarah,
perhaps you should concentrate on spelling.. and if you don't like these
questions don't reply-and don't be rude.
— kjonhjk
May 9, 2003
Cheryl N.... I was'nt really calling Jesus a sinner. Ether you are a bad
reader (like myself) or you missed my sarcasum. :)
— Danmark
May 9, 2003
Sarah, Adrian is seeking approval from the Lord. She just wanted insight
on others experiences, who may have gone through the same. Craving the
WILL of God is not 'retarded' as you put it (but spelled correctly). It is
a very serious matter. And if you were a Christian, you would understand
and not be judgemental. Adrian, you will have to seek the Lords will on
this, and pray that he will guide you and give you the wisdom to make this
very important decision.
— Cheri M.
May 10, 2003
The primary tenent of my religion is to do what you will, so far as it
harms none. I've spent a lifetime harming myself with food ... it's time
to stop that, and to begin taking care of myself. I firmly believe that I
have a spiritual responsibility to do what it takes to make myself as
healthy as possible. I can't help but think that any God or Goddess would
want His/Her followers to be healthy and happy and therefore more able to
be shining examples of Diety itself.
— Dragon G.
May 10, 2003
Reminds me of a proverb for those whose sail has become torn while at sea:
Pray to God, but row to shore.
— merri B.
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