This blogpost is a little off the beaten path for me (that's why I'll call it SAT 15.5, not SAT 16), but I decided to write this after a discussion I had with my brother-in-love (a.k.a. brother-in-law), who still isn't ready to donate blood by the way!
There are medical and other physical advantages you and I can access by donating blood voluntarily (for no particular recipient) and regularly. Personally, I also BELIEVE there are some spiritual benefits which I'll share in this list. Here goes:
1. You get screened for HIV, Hepatitis B & Hepatitis C viral infections for FREE regularly because your blood has to be screened and certified fit for transfusion.
2. In the process, you also get to know your blood group and packed cell volume (percentage of red cells in your blood at that time).
3. You challenge your bone marrow to produce new red blood cells to replace donated and old cells.
4. You get a voluntary donor card which may come to good use in certain circumstances e.g. interviews (for various purposes) where it has been known to serve as an extra consideration for some people.
5. In people prone to iron overload, blood donation prevents the accumulation of toxic quantities of iron. It's actually used to treat hereditary iron overload (haemochromatosis).
6. Donating blood MAY reduce the risk of heart disease for men (though the link has not been firmly established).
7. Repeated blood donation is effective in reducing blood pressure, blood sugar, HbA1C (a "bad" type of haemoglobin), low-density lipoprotein/high-density lipoprotein ratio (a bad thing too!), and heart rate in people with metabolic syndrome.
8. In some countries, the government gives a yearly holiday, awards and other incentives to repeated voluntary donors.
9. You get the benefit of being involved in saving a life (make no mistake about it, blood saves lives, with God's help of course).
10. I know you've been waiting to see the spiritual benefits:
a. What a man sows, he shall reap (Luke 6:38): Now, you don't need to reap blood as such, LOL! Because you're sowing HELP, you're bound to receive help in some way as a direct consequence. This one I'm 100% sure of.
b. Ministering divine life to another: Leviticus 17 makes it clear in verses 11 & 14 that the life of a creature is in its blood. If indeed I have taken Christ's flesh & blood (the Holy Communion) and the Holy Spirit in me also gives life to my mortal body which includes my blood (John 6:54 & Romans 8:11), then the one who receives my blood through transfusion can also benefit from that life and be healed/saved from physical death. I only have those 3 scriptures to go on and there was no transfusion in Jesus' time so I might be wrong, but when I donate my blood, that's what I usually pray for the one who will be transfused with it. If you believe so too, great!
Now, even if you don't believe in the spiritual benefits I outlined and you don't exactly need the physical benefits, SOMEBODY out there still NEEDS your blood! Scores of people die everyday because blood is not readily available at certain crucial times. Your half-litre of blood donated every 3 or 6 months or even once a year can make a huge difference to a patient, their family and other loved ones. Please consider donating blood regularly at a standard medical facility near you.
If you have questions/doubts about blood donation (or you want to talk about that "ministering life through your blood" thing!), please feel free to comment here or reach me @ adewumitola@yahoo.co.uk or on BBM (7E3DAA5F) or @ 08131048442 (I'm on whatsapp). God bless you real good! Dr Jesutola O. Adewumi (God-lover, Bondservant, Doctor).
