Good morning. For a very long-time medical science thought it knew all about stomach ulcers. It was understood that such ulcers were caused primarily by a genetic weakness of the stomach lining, and this problem was exacerbated by stress and diet, both of which could cause an increase in stomach acidity levels. The thoughts and treatments were consistent: There isn’t any remedy for a genetically caused stomach lining weakness, so be extremely careful not to eat acidic foods and take medications to help ease stress. So, there you have it, there was no way of treating the cause, so every effort was given to treat the symptoms.
Back in 1982, internal-medicine resident Barry Marshall was frustrated that more couldn’t be done to help people with this very dangerous and painful condition. While studying slides of the stomach lining of ulcer patients, he noticed that a particular bacterium was typically present. The bacterium was called Campylobacter bacteria, which had been first identified and isolated by pathologist Dr. J. Robin Warren. Dr. Marshall and Dr. Warren began a yearlong collaboration to study 100 ulcer patients. They found that the bacteria in question was present in 87% of the cases. It was a breakthrough! They immediately published their findings, expecting to see a dramatic change in the way stomach ulcers were understood and treated. They were mistaken. The medical community shared a great yawn and told them to go away. The traditional thinking medical community insisted that the bacteria were only another side-effect of the ulcer problem and in no way a part of the cause.
Marshall and Warren could not find funding to continue their study, and no one seemed interested in what they had to say. It seemed like the only reasonable thing to do was to say, “we tried” and get on with their lives. Fortunately, Marshall and Warren were not reasonable men. They continued their study, mostly at their own expense. It took longer, years in fact. They discovered that the bacteria could be controlled with a combination of bismuth and antibiotics and that ulcer patients so treated began to show significant healing and recovery. They again published their findings, and they were again ignored.
Doctors Marshall and Warren refused to give up and began their own 5-year clinical studies. The results were exactly as they expected them to be and by the late 1980s their work could no longer be ignored. Today, their treatment for stomach ulcers is considered a primary treatment option. Thousands of people have been helped, even cured. They also found that this same bacterium was present in certain stomach cancer patients and their treatment proved to be effective in those cases as well.
The bottom line is that they refused to give up. They believed in what they were doing and refused to let traditional ideas thwart their efforts. They hung in there and refused to be denied, and because they did so, thousands of people have been blessed.
We read this in James 1:2-8 Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you. But when you ask, you must believe and not doubt, because the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. That person should not expect to receive anything from the Lord. Such a person is double-minded and unstable in all they do. James finishes this thought in verse 12 Blessed is the one who perseveres under trial because, having stood the test, that person will receive the crown of life that the Lord has promised to those who love him.
Life may be marked by disappointments and trials, but God tells us to hang in there, don’t give up, and to bring it to God with the expectation that the disappointments will be turned into blessings.
Hang in there. God will bring about what is right, good, and blessed for all who are committed to Him (Romans 8:28).
Vern