Dentophobia Vs. Churchophobia

 

    There are very few things that are half as disconcerting as a trip to the dentist; at least it is for me.  I have had very few good experiences with dentists or any other related professions such as orthodontists or dental surgeons.  I have had my jaw dislocated, a vein in my tongue cut, poorly inserted needles, etc.  Dentophobia is an especially and highly contagious fear of dentists.  Millions fail to get the proper dental treatment they need because of this fear.

 

    Yesterday was my dental appointment, since I am writing this article now, you can come to the conclusion that I survived.  J  Yay!

 

     It had been about two years since my last check-up and I was going to a relatively new practice in the area.  I arrived only to find the parking lot completely empty, which by no means allayed my skepticism; I was just as suspicious as ever.

 

    Once inside, we were given a tour of the torture chambers, I mean, the dental office.  The staff was friendly, I could only attribute it to the fact that they were trying to lure unsuspecting patients deeper into their labyrinth of halls.  Way ahead of the game that morning, I was memorizing possible escape routes.

 

    The first step was to fill out paper work, I could have laughed (or cried, I don’t know quite which) when I got to the section that asked, “Which one of these do you feel when you have to go to the dentist office?”  Then of course there were all the choices: fear, anxiety, distrust, etc.  I gripped my pen tightly wondering if they would be too offended if I circled all of them.

 

    They asked questions like: “How many times do you brush your teeth?”  I felt a little smug when I told them I brushed my teeth every day.  That feeling was quickly squashed when they asked me how many times I flossed.  I’ll be honest, “At least once a month, if I remember.”  (The look on her face!  You should have seen it.)

 

    Next, they took a bunch of x-rays of my teeth and jaw to diagnose any potential problems.  Then came the time to insert several whirring tools into my mouth, to proceed with the cleaning process.  I stared at the ceiling hoping it would be over quickly.  Some thoughts that crossed my mind were:

 

·         I now know why dentist offices have screens to play videos for children, because otherwise every child under the age of 10 would be staring at the person with wide and terrified eyes as a strange procession of tools proceed through their mouth OR they would be staring, thinking… That eyebrow hair is a bit crooked, hmmm… when was the last time this person slept? They have like, dark rings around their eyes.  Is that person wearing a face mask because my breath smells bad?  (I honestly don’t know how a person could not be self-conscious with a child studying every inch of their exposed face.) 

·         Am I the only one, who when the dentist removes their especially sharp cleaning device they extract a long, thick strand of saliva? The dentist person swirls their tool, wrapping the strand of saliva around it much like a person would eat spaghetti, (don’t mean to gross anyone out)

·         Are they pouring sand in my mouth? Because my teeth feel really grainy and I don’t think it is my breakfast (wheat cereal anyone?)

·         Is that my blood on their white glove that smell strangely of recycled plastic?

·         Hmm, when they pull out the floss I think they are speckling my face with blood, some toothpaste, saliva or maybe a combination of all three.

·         I wonder if he is getting irritated with wiping the fog off his tool’s mirror, maybe I should try breathing through my nose instead.

 

     Of course, then the dentist has to converse with you, asking the obvious question:  “Does that hurt?”  And I am supposed to reply with an odd assortment of tools in my mouth, they probably do that on purpose.  Though, it is amazing how they can make a person feel like a little kid again.  “What flavor of toothpaste would you like? Grape, Cherry, Mint, or Bubble Gum?  What color of toothbrush would you like? Blue, Pink, Purple, Green, Orange, Red, or Yellow?”

 

    Okay I’ll go along with it.  Hmm, what flavor?  I am feeling adventurous today, give me Cherry.  What color of toothbrush?  I’ll have purple, oh, you are out of purple.  I guess I’ll take the green one then.

 

    Finally, the whole long process comes to an end.  They pack me up a little bag of goodies (toothbrush, toothpaste, floss, fluoride, etc.) and give me an invitation to visit them again (I don’t think so!).

 

    All in all, the experience went rather well and I didn’t experience a lot of trauma or pain.  J  I can smile about it… now.

 

    I actually couldn’t help but think about how similar this experience could be to our Christian walk.  We go to a church for the first time and hardly see anyone in the parking lot, hmmm… is that a bad sign?  Perhaps you haven’t had good experiences with church or church people before.  Should you trust them?

 

    We have lots of plaque coating our teeth, eating away at the roots, our nerves, and making our strong teeth, weak.  How much it resembles sin!  Eating away at our spirit and soul until we fail to feel convicted!  It happens so gradually, you may not even notice that you are growing weaker.

 

    Sometimes we don’t want to go to church because we are afraid to get cleaned up, it might hurt.  Can’t we do all the brushing ourselves?  Then we can avoid that tender area over there, or the sin building up over here, after all it is so small no one will really notice it right?  Maybe we sit in church staring at the ceiling, wondering, “Is he almost done?  I can’t wait to get out of here.”

 

    The dentist doesn’t spare you the cleaning if he is a good dentist.  If it is dirty he is going to clean it, regardless of the pain.  Then he will give you the things you need to take care of your teeth and make them strong: fluoride, a toothbrush, toothpaste, and floss; and you will also need to keep visiting him regularly to keep everything on the right track.

 

   In much the same way, the pastor does his best to give you the things you need to be strong.  Of course, sometimes he’ll jab you in an especially tender area maybe cut away some of the buildup, but if he avoided the messy spots of your life or places that were real tender, then he wouldn’t be a good pastor.

 

    Our pastor arms us with things to keep us strong: the Word, Fellowship, Encouragement, Guidance, etc.  With all these things we can really become strong.  We can start scrubbing away build-up and stains of sin that have started to accumulate in our lives.  This allows us to reap the maximum benefits God has to offer us.

   

    Which brings us to the next step, service is over and it is your choice if you want to come back again, regardless of whether you had a good or bad experience.

 

     People take the time to floss their teeth or maybe brush their teeth daily, sometimes even twice a day.  How much time to you spend reading your Bible, listening to the Message, or praying?  Once a week? Or once a month, when you remember?

 

    If you want to stay strong in your spiritual walk with Christ, then you must read your Bible and pray every day.  Going to church and having a good pastor to help you, goes a long way too!  It helps keep your spiritual walk from deteriorating.  So how about it?  Are you gonna brush up on your Bible and prayer life to become a stronger Christian?  The choice is yours!