Blood Flow

In early 2024, I injured my toe.

Was it a sports injury?

Hardly.

I stubbed it too much when I tried to put my shoe on.

How is that for athleticism?

Anyway, since then, it’s been bothering me.

Not just my toe, but my foot, and even spreading into my leg.

I have seen the doctor, had x-rays and bloodwork done.

And, most recently, a couple of Vascular ultrasounds.

These tests were ordered by my doctor to check for any artery blockages, as well as to assess my vein and blood flow.

Life… and health… are in the blood flow, right?

Attired Properly.

So, I showed up for my appointment.

It was a hot, humid, June day on the East Coast.

80 degrees by seven that morning. My appointment was at eight.

I wore a dress, a simple, cool dress.

As the Vascular Technician greeted me…

“Oh, you are dressed perfectly!”

What she meant by that is, well, easy access to my bare legs.

No pants to remove or to hike up.

No tights.

(Not that I would wear tights on a hot, humid day).

A dress.

She and her assistant immediately started prepping me for the procedure.

You must have the right set up.

This translates spiritually: The Blood.

“For the life of the flesh is in the blood, and I have given it to you on the altar to make atonement for your souls; for it is the blood by reason of the life that makes atonement.”

Leviticus 17:11

What is the point?

The Blood is the raison d'être, the reason for being.

“…it is the blood by reason of the life that makes atonement.”

 

 

The blood addresses… and dresses… us properly.

Old Testament was there first, with the animal sacrifices of bulls, goats, lambs, and doves.

And then The New Testament…

And Our Savior, becoming sin and the ultimate sin offering, eradicating the need for animal sacrifices.

His Blood paid the price, for all time.

Are we dressed properly?

No, it’s not the most pleasant thought to entertain, being covered by blood.

But, as far as Connection/Redemption with Our Heavenly Father, it’s a necessity.

Before we even start to live “life more abundantly” (John 10:10), we need to come to our life appointment, attired properly.

Are we?

A Faith Touch.

There are different kinds of blood issues and diseases. There are different kinds of blood flow.

Part of what brought me to this Vascular testing was that my toes, foot, and even leg felt like there was an issue with my circulation.

It was like there was a kink in the garden hose.

Something felt jammed, obstructed, not working properly. My blood didn’t seem to effectively reach my toes and foot.

There was numbness, coldness, tingling, sometimes, fiery stinging.

I had an issue with blood. That was why I was here in the Cardiovascular Testing Suite.

The Vascular ultrasounds were acts of faith.

An act of believing this would help me.

Kind of like another woman, centuries ago…

“Just then a woman who had been subject to bleeding for twelve years came up behind him and touched the edge of his cloak. She said to herself, ‘If I only touch his cloak, I will be healed.’ Jesus (Yahshua) turned and saw her. ‘Take heart, Daughter,’ he said, ‘your faith has healed you.’”

Matthew 9:20-22

This woman made an appointment to show up to faith touch Our Savior.

Her faith touch, indeed, made an impact…

“But Jesus (Yahshua) said, ‘Someone deliberately touched me, for I felt healing power go out from me.’”

Luke 8:46

Medical issues. Spiritual issues. The common denominator is belief.

We do believe in something.

We have faith enough to see a doctor, to schedule an appointment, to show up for that appointment.

We have faith in trusting and submitting to the process/procedure.

Acts of faith.

It’s a life-changing act of faith, therefore, to believe The Blood.

To see it’s His, to agree we need His Blood to cover our sins, to schedule the priority of not just an appointment, but a relationship with Him.

And yes, (here is where I sigh and groan a bit), to believe, to trust, to submit to His process and procedures.

Testing.

And that flows into the next element of blood flow…

Blood…Pressure.

The ultrasound tests, yes, focused on my bare legs.

I was told to hop on the medical recliner.

And then, the technician and her assistant, started uncoiling these longer blue strips; they were the “blood pressure cuffs” for my legs. For my entire legs.

They started winding them around, velcroing them securely in place. My legs were wrapped from my ankles to my hips.

Next came a bunch of wires. Red, blue, green, yellow, black.

They hooked me up to the machine that does the reading.

Both legs, one arm (not my “extremity arm.” That arm is down one Lymph node, removed at the time of my bilateral mastectomy. I need to avoid using that arm, for increased risk of Lymphedema, post-breast cancer).

I am now a Sci-Fi Creation.

Kinda like the robot from Metropolis.

Like the standard blood pressure procedure involving our arms, all the hooked-up cuffs on my legs and one arm, are inflated to gauge the pressure readings.

Legs are done first. Starting with the ankle area, working upward.

And yes, there’s the squeeze of the blood PRESSURE.

It’s uncomfortable, especially around my calves.

I wait for the succession of squeezing pressure installments to complete its process.

Next, gel and little bandage-looking strips are wrapped around both big toes and my originally injured, fourth toe.

The same blood pressure inflation. Squeezing.

Lastly, my arm. Typical blood pressure cuff action there.

Throughout each inflation, I see the reading on the screen of the machine I’m hooked up to. I hear a whooshing sound (my pulse and blood flow). The peaks and lines travel up and down.

Sometimes, it looks like a flatline. (I am pretty sure I’m NOT dead).

The duration of the testing is about twenty-five minutes.

Pressure.

It’s a way to measure and assess things.

Pressure, from a health perspective, can determine how strong, flexible, resilient, damaged, and ill you and I may be.

There’s pressure involved with blood.

There’s pressure involved with HIS BLOOD.

“But now in Christ Jesus (Yahshua Hamashiach) you who formerly were far off have been brought near by the Blood of Christ.”

Ephesians 2:13

Once you and I accept Yahshua as Our Savior, and the Master Influence in our lives, pressure, somehow, increases.

Now, we are tested as we once weren’t. Now, perhaps, things feel more difficult.

We feel squeezed.

Now, there can come THE PRESSURE to resemble Him, act like Him, love like Him.

And, your favorite, and mine, to CHANGE.

I hear some groaning out there. (Wait a minute. It’s mostly from me, I think).

Blood PRESSURE IS a part of Blood Flow. We cannot get past it.

We cannot opt out of the Squeeze.

The Squeeze, the Blood Pressure, tells us about our Spiritual condition.

Is there a blockage?

Has something internal… died?

Where’s the sickness?

Where’s the injury?

What changes can be made to resume healthy Blood Flow?

Reading/Results: “Apart from Me...”

“I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing.”

John 15:5

A Master Artery, with smaller arteries connected.

Is that what we are when it comes to Yahshua?

A direct question, with a direct answer: yes.

And it’s directly connected to Blood Flow.

“So Jesus (Yahshua) said to them, ‘Truly, truly, I say to you, unless you eat the Flesh of the Son of Man and drink His Blood, you have no life in yourselves. He who eats My Flesh and drinks My Blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day. For My Flesh is true food, and My Blood is true drink. Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood remains in me, and I in them.”

John 6:53-56

Results may vary?

What ARE the Results?

Concerning my Vascular ultrasounds, it’s still too early to say. I have gotten some test results back. And, because I have not attended medical school, I have no clue what they mean.

Apart from, yes, apparently, I have blood in my body. And it is moving.

I am still, also, in the middle of testing. I am scheduled to have bloodwork done next week.

To determine what’s going on.

It’s tedious, ongoing, sometimes, frustrating, sometimes, painful and uncomfortable.

Oh, and it’s scary, too.

Kinda like this life of…Faith.

I don’t know what the final tally will look like.

But Blood, nevertheless, is critical. I cannot ignore its role in my life.

My DNA… and HIS.

I need both to live. Blood flow must emanate from both of us.

Thinking for too long about this concept can be overwhelming.

But a good starting point?

Being thankful for the Blood that is moving and doing its work within me right now.

Physical. Spiritual.

Abba,

In the Name, and by THE BLOOD, of Yahshua, I come to You.

I thank You for THE BLOOD FLOW I have no control over. I thank You that, whether it’s Your Son’s Salvaging Blood, or my finite physical blood, there is movement and life, FOR my life.

Thank You for this, while I wait for You, indeed, “to perfect that which concerns me” (Psalm 138:8).

I ask for Your help to let His Blood cover, speak, live, heal, and prosper within me. Help me to cooperate with this Blood Flow Process.

Thank you. I receive the Fulness of Yahshua’s Blood, all for Your Glory,

Amen.

Copyright © 2025 by Sheryle Cruse