Psalm 38 - The Physical Effects of Sin

      Over the years I have witnessed the physical effects of sin in my office practice and on mission trips. In Nicaragua, there was a common list of complaints of women raised in the church who were living with their boyfriend out of wedlock and they knew it was wrong and it was affecting them physically. I called it the sin syndrome. I was a chaperone on a church trip with the youth and after a message on getting right with the Lord, one of the teen boys was so convicted of his sin of pornography that he was temporarily catatonic and was stuck halfway up the stairs. Sin affects us physically and there are several passages that discuss it in the Bible but the one I want to deal with today is Psalm 38.

1. guilt  My guilt has overwhelmed me

    like a burden too heavy to bear. vs 4

    Researchers have actually done studies on this and have found that being weighed down by guilt is more than a metaphor. people actually feel like they weigh more when they are feeling guilty. Guilt makes you feel like you are wearing weights. Weighed down by guilt: Research shows it's more than a metaphor (princeton.edu)

2. Depression  I am bowed down and brought very low;

    all day long I go about mourning.  vs 6

    Although sin may seem fun at the time, it will eventually lead to depression. If you are cheated on by someone you love, obviously that could lead to depression but what's interesting is the high incidence of depression found in the cheater. When people eschew Christianity, I have been interested in my office over the years to see how many are getting through life on anti-depressants. I think it's fair in witnessing to ask "How's that working out for you? are you on medication to keep you happy?

3 Body pain (fibromyalgia?)  My back is filled with searing pain;

    there is no health in my body. vs 7

    The burden of carrying sin and guilt can cause clenched muscles with fatigue and body pain from TMJ to low back pain. Massages and spas are so popular because they ease the tension of muscle spasms. Certainly muscle spasms are usually caused by hard work but sometimes just the anxiety and guilt of sin can cause chronic pain syndromes and many people feel that fibromyalgia is more of a psychological illness than a physical one.

4. Tachycardia (rapid heart rate)   I groan in anguish of heart.

 All my longings lie open before you, Lord;
    my sighing is not hidden from you.
 My heart pounds  vs 9,10

One of the top reasons that people get rapid heart rate is stress or anxiety. If you are in the midst of a sinful lifestyle the fear of being found out or the guilt can keep you up at night and you can feel your heart pounding in your chest. Are you relaxed and at peace without a guilty conscience? Isn't that awesome!

5. Fatigue - my strength fails me vs 10

If all the other symptoms are there, feeling weighed down, depressed, muscle aches, rapid heart beat, it only stands do reason that you would feel fatigued.

6. Loneliness or isolation - My friends and companions avoid me vs.11 

People in the midst of sin don't like to be alone. They need crowds, distractions, and not alone times where they are forced to reflect.

7. Paranoia / not thinking straight - Those who want to kill me set their traps,

    those who would harm me talk of my ruin;
    all day long they scheme and lie vs.12

Sin does not bring peace but an anxious plooting mind that thinks others are doing the same thinking about you. Sin brings a self-centered mind

God wrote the handbook for life and it's called the Bible. If we follow it this is the way to live the blessed life free from all these self inflicted burdens. It was tough on me as a doctor listening to all these complaints day after day and knowing that the root cause was they weren't right with the Lord. If I suggested this or pryed into their spiritual well-being, very few here in the Bible belt would admit to not being right with the Lord which made things difficult. Eventually I dropped the yearly checkup part of the practice because it got me down and sucked the joy out of me which delivering babies gave me in abundance.