the sneeze

This time of year there's a whole lot of sneezing going on.  Something about winter is associated with head colds and other nasal disturbances.  For some reason loud sneezes are one of the genetic traits passed down in my family.  Not only can our sneezes be ear shattering...they can seemingly erupt without notice and startle everyone within hearing range.  It is possible to stifle, or muffle, the sneeze but you feel like you're turning all that energy inside out, and that can't be good.  So I wondered what sneezes are all about.  It turns out that there is a special part of the brain dedicated to "sneeze control".  When the lining of the nose is irritated by certain bacteria or other unfiltered particles....or sometimes when you are exposed to bright lights...certain chemicals are released that stimulate nerve endings that wakeup the "sneeze center" in the brain.  The brain then sends out an alarm to an array of muscles in the head and neck which cause a buildup and release of a burst of air from the lungs.  Part of the reflex opens the vocal cords to allow the pressurized air to flow back up through the nose and "blow out" the unwanted irritants.  It's really quite a drama taking place in our body.  It occurs to me that sneezing is just one of countless functions my body performs automatically on my behalf.  It hasn't been necessary for me to understand sneezing to sneeze and I probably understand little about most of the things my body does for me.  It makes me realize that I have been designed to focus my attention on other things than sneezing...(which will pretty much take care of itself).  Our wonderful Creator has designed us with bodies that function extremely well so that we can be freed to love and care for others who walk about in similar bodies.

 

2 Kings 4:³⁴ And he went up and lay on the child, and put his mouth on his mouth, his eyes on his eyes, and his hands on his hands; and he stretched himself out on the child, and the flesh of the child became warm. ³⁵ He returned and walked back and forth in the house, and again went up and stretched himself out on him; then the child sneezed seven times, and the child opened his eyes. ³⁶ And he called Gehazi and said, "Call this Shunammite woman." So he called her. And when she came in to him, he said, "Pick up your son."

 

blessings,

Rob Smith