This week I am away on my yearly planning/prayer/study retreat. In place of my blog we have a guest blog from Dr. Munier Nour.  Munier works in pediatrics in Calgary, he is husband to Mary, and father to Elias and their newest edition James.

“Miracles are a retelling in small letters of the very same story which is written across the whole world in letters too large for some of us to see.” ― C.S. Lewis

Working in pediatrics, I have the privilege of working with families during some of the most delicate times in their lives – times things don’t go as planned. Recently, I’ve had close interactions with a family whose baby did not develop properly in utero. The birth of their child coincided very closely with the birth of our second son, James. As I interacted with them, I ached with the knowledge that I had a healthy, perfectly formed newborn – something they so longed for.

Outside of clinic, my summer has been filled with studying for my final clinical exam in September. I once again find myself burdened by uncomfortably large text books and a steady supply of caffeine. I often find myself frustrated that during the beautiful weather of summer my skin is warmed by florescent lights rather than the sun. I tend to resent the material I am studying, rather than be amazed.

Occasionally, though, it hits me. Did you know at least four hormones manufactured in six different sites keep your blood calcium tightly in balance? If your calcium level gets too high you’ll develop kidney stones, too low and you’ll have a seizure. Your cells have a complex mechanism to sense when to make more hormones. Each hormone is manufactured following a precise blueprint in your DNA then carried through your bloodstream until it finds the precise receptor. These hormones keep your calcium at just the right level – not too high, not too low. Calcium is just one of hundreds of minerals and compounds the body tightly regulates.

Even despite whole volumes written on hundreds of the body’s mysteries, a similar phrase continues to pop up in my textbooks: “This process is not fully understood” or “the mechanism is not yet known”. It seems strangely similar to what Paul wrote: “I will destroy the wisdom of the wise and discard the intelligence of the intelligent.” So where does this this leave the philosophers, the scholars, and the world’s brilliant debaters? God has made the wisdom of this world look foolish…The foolish plan of God is wiser than the wisest of human plans, and God’s weakness is stronger than the greatest of human strength. (1Cor 1:19-20,25)

Even as I write this blog entry, the above hormones are at work, not to mention countless other behind the scenes actions of my body. My heart is pumping 74 gallons of blood in an hour, my nerves are sending near instantaneous signals between my brain and fingers, while my lungs exchange gases to keep me alive. Again, each process an infinitely complex miracle – yet simply taken for granted.

I am thankful to be given a chance to explore a bit deeper the mysteries of the human body and use that knowledge to help others. It is a unique chance to daily see the ways in which His creation declares the glory of God.

As I enjoy watching James grow before my eyes I am reminded of God’s grace and goodness. To see God’s perfect design unfolding as James grows and develops. His eyes now recognize familiar faces and light up with recognition and adorable smiles… nothing short of a miracle.

You have made all the delicate, inner parts of my body and knit me together in my mother’s womb. Thank you for making me so wonderfully complex! Your workmanship is marvelous – how well I know it. You watched me as I was being formed in utter seclusion, as I was woven together in the dark of the womb. You saw me before I was born. Every day of my life was recorded in your book. Every moment laid out before a single day had passed. How precious are your thoughts about me, O God. They cannot be numbered!        Psalms 139:13-17

Question:  What do you take for granted, that you should worship God for?  Leave your comment below.