Tag: tooth

Even When I Don’t See, I Still Believe

I only hear stories like this in testimonies shared at church. You know those types of stories where the people share about being miraculously healed by God? And how their cancer disappeared and the doctors couldn’t believe it?

Well, do you remember my most recent blog post about my cracked tooth? Miraculously, the crack on my tooth is gone. THE CRACK ON MY TOOTH DISAPPEARED. I couldn’t believe it. Doc Grace also couldn’t believe it.

On my way here earlier, I was semi-dreading my appointment with my dentist. A part of me wanted to get it over with. A part of me was also worried and very sad about the fact that I will be having a denture at a young age. But, another part of me accepted the fact that my tooth had already given up on me. As I parked and walked towards the clinic, I remember telling God, “Lord, if it is Your will, would you please make a miracle? Would you please heal my cracked tooth which honestly seems really impossible. But if not, Lord, I trust that You will still take care of me.”

I sat on the dental chair and kept repeating these words to myself “Bahala na si God sayo, Nicole. He’ll take care of you. You can have peace in your heart because of Him.” When doc Grace opened it up and did a few tests, we were both surprised that I didn’t feel any discomfort contrary to how I felt while I was chewing on that side this past week. She took an X-ray photo of my tooth just to double check the crack before finishing up the third session of my root canal. While waiting for the film to develop, I laid down on the dental chair and kept praying “Lord, I find my strength in You. May Your will be done. May Your will be done.”

A few minutes later, doc Grace said “I can’t seem to find the crack!”

With a confused look on my face, I stood up and went near her to take a look at the X-ray film myself. My eyes widened as I saw the miracle right in front of me. It really was gone! We got the X-ray photo taken last Feb. 3 and compared it against the one that was taken today.

DOC GRACE: That’s weird.
ME: It’s sooo weird.
DOC GRACE: It’s weeeird.
ME: I know. That’s suuuper weird! What happened??
DOC GRACE: It seems like your prayers were answered! Even I don’t understand what happened. I just know that last month, your tooth had a crack below the gums and now, the tooth under the gums is whole.
ME: Doc! Maybe there was a dirt when the first X-ray photo was taken?
DOC GRACE: The dark curve on the film wasn’t a dirt because artifacts (metal, dirt, etc.) will be colored white on the X-ray, not dark gray/black. Also, the curved crack last month was so defined. It wasn’t even a straight line which could have been mistaken as a reflection of a pattern of the X-ray machine.

She then finished the rest of the root canal procedure and I thanked her for it. I still couldn’t comprehend what happened. It wasn’t sinking in. For weeks, because of my cracked tooth, I struggled emotionally, physically, and spiritually.

There was a time last month when I even complained about my situation:

“I wouldn’t have this cracked tooth and root canal if it wasn’t for the huge pasta.
I wouldn’t have the huge pasta if it wasn’t for the deep cavity.
I wouldn’t have the deep cavity if it wasn’t for the molar jacket and lack of guidance of a previous dentist when I wore braces.
I wouldn’t have braces if it wasn’t for my crooked teeth.
I wouldn’t have crooked teeth IF IT WASN’T FOR YOU, LORD! This is your fault! Why did you have to make me this way? Why didn’t you just give me a straight set of teeth?”

But, after numerous times of struggling and surrendering these thoughts to Him, I was humbled by the Lord and reminded to still trust in His plan for me. He showed me that He made me the way I am for a special purpose and I just needed to trust that He is able to use me to be a blessing to others even through my weaknesses and flaws. He also helped me be grateful that I can still enjoy my favorite food and that I am not allergic to anything.

Honestly, I still am struggling with my worries about my teeth’s situation since it went through a lot already. But, the miracle that God showed me today moved my heart so much that I ended up crying in front of my eldest sister as soon as I arrived home. I felt this comfort and peace from the Lord as if He was telling me: “Nic, I see your heart. I see how much you are struggling. But, I know and can see that you want to honor me still. Because of My grace, I will make your cracked tooth whole and heal it miraculously today. Continue walking with Me. I am watching over you.”

Out of the overflowing grace and comfort in my heart, I cried to the Lord: “Most of the time, it really is difficult for me to trust in You and faithfully walk with You especially when I don’t understand why You allow things to happen or why You made me this way. But today, I was encouraged to surrender my 1% to you. Even if I feel like I’m stuck, at the bottom of the pit, or weak in my walk, if there is at least 1% in my heart to seek and follow You, Lord, I am humbled to do so. You are able to use even that 1% of faith in me, as small as a mustard seed, to show Your power, glory, and sovereignty in my life!”

“…Truly I tell you, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you.” -Matthew‬ ‭17:20‬

Thank you to everyone who prayed with me! I pray that you would be encouraged to give even your 1% to the Lord, no matter how weak, disappointed, angry, confused, and indifferent you may feel at this moment. Whatever it is, our God remains to be the same faithful and gracious God that He is. He sees you. He knows your deepest hurts and needs. He will continue to take care of you. He just wants you to take that one step of faith!

I read my previous blog post and realized that the Lord already answered most of the prayer requests I listed! Thank You, Lord, for Your grace!

“The only place I can go is into your arms
Where I throw to you my feeble prayers
In brokenness I can see that this was Your will for me
Help me to know You are near
Even when I don’t see, I still believe…”
-Jeremy Camp

Smile, Though Your Tooth Is Aching

I just came from an appointment with my dentist. The right side of my mouth is still pretty swollen as I am typing this. But, by God’s grace, I had a smooth and painless root canal session this afternoon. This, by the way, was my second root canal and I honestly do not want more in the future. Huhu.

When 75% of the treatment was completed, Doctor Grace was observing the X-ray of my tooth that she took in the middle of the procedure. While I was waiting on the patient’s chair, I thought about how the anesthesia felt like grace. Throughout the procedure, she asked me this question a couple of times: “Does it hurt now?” and I responded with “No.” each time. It was amazing! Was it supposed to hurt? I did not notice because of the anesthesia’s effect on my mouth. Despite my shortcomings in taking care of my teeth, I was still able to go through a painless treatment to kill the nerves of my tooth. Because of the anesthesia, I was spared from feeling the intense pain. It reminded me very much of GRACE. I felt so comforted and encouraged as I waited for the doctor to do the final steps in the treatment.

But then, the unexpected happened.

Doctor Grace asked me to stand beside her so I could also have a careful look at the X-ray. At first, it seemed normal, until she said: “We will need to monitor your teeth in the coming days or weeks. I am not yet sure why, but there’s something unusual about your tooth. It looks like the bottom side of your tooth is cracked.” While she was explaining these to me, my surroundings started to become clouded and I remember trying to keep myself focused on what she was saying. I said some words such as, “Ohhh, yeah!”, “That’s weird.”, “There IS a crack!”, “What does it mean?”, and “What could have caused it?”. She answered my questions as she led me back to the dental chair and then she finished the rest of the treatment.

Usually, when I encounter concerns or problems in my life, I quickly whisper a sincere prayer to the Lord saying “Lord, please help me.” Or “Please guide me. What should I do?”. But, at that moment, I couldn’t even muster a word to the Lord. I responded with a blank stare and with silence in my heart. Before leaving the clinic, I did my best to ask as much questions as I could about the options that I have, things I should expect and watch out for, and the possible worst scenarios that could happen. My dentist eventually told me to go back after a week or two, so I could have it checked again. She also said: “Let’s pray that it won’t be something serious and that it would not worsen.” I said “Okay, doc!” and went straight to the car.

“Let’s pray… let’s pray about it. Pray? Really, Lord? Do You really answer prayers? Why do problems in this life never end? In my life?! I just came from a root canal treatment and You know how huge this leap was for me. But, after making that leap, You still allow me to face another hurdle with my teeth? I bet other people don’t have problems like this. Lord, I am honestly so disappointed with this situation.”

I think I spent the next five minutes withdrawing from the Lord and drawing near to Him again with a heavy heart and with a few tears in my eyes. In Tagalog, I said to Him: “Lord, nagtatampo ako sa Inyo. Bakit ako? Bakit ngipin ko na naman?” However, despite the hurt and numbness in both my tooth and heart, I somehow kept repeating these lines in my mind:

“God answered your prayer for a successful root canal session! Praise God! Thank Him!”

“Grabe, Nic. Remember grace. Even your doctor’s name is Grace! God is encouraging you to remember that His grace is sufficient in your weakness.”

“Just like any other test or challenge in the past, this is an opportunity to strengthen your faith as you trust in the Lord, Nic.”

“You have two options now. You can either COMPLAIN or TRUST that God is in control.”

…and then, I started to sing the lyrics “He is high and exalted and worthy of praise. With our hearts, we will love and adore. He is high and exalted and worthy of praise. Holy is the Lord.”

Honestly, a part of me was discouraged to pray for blessing, prevention of worse situations, provision, and protection because I felt that these were beyond God’s control. But, clearly, this was a lie in my head. By the grace of God, another side of me continued to remind me of verses in the Bible which talk about who God is:

ISAIAH 55:8 – GOD IS SOVEREIGN

“For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, declares the Lord.”

MATTHEW 17:20 – GOD IS FAITHFUL AND ABLE

“…If you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there’, and it will move. Nothing is impossible.”

PSALM 84:11 – GOD IS GOOD

“For the Lord is a sun and shield… No good thing does he withhold from those whose walk is blameless.”

A few minutes before I typed this blog post, God encouraged me to humble myself before Him and ask for Him to remove every hint of bitterness, disappointment, anger, and doubt towards Him in me. Even if it is currently very difficult for me to swallow problem after problem when it comes to my aching teeth, by God’s grace, I will keep on trusting in the Lord’s sovereignty, faithfulness, power, and goodness.

With this, I humbly ask that you would pray for me as well as I go through the next few days and weeks. Here are some of my specific prayer requests for my teeth:

  1. The “crack” on my tooth – We’re not yet sure if it is a crack. But, if it is, please pray that it would not cause any pain or swelling at its area or around it. That it would miraculously heal and be attached to the tooth.
  2. That I would not have to get that tooth extracted, so that it would not require me to have retainers or dentures and more expenses in the future.
  3. That the tooth that went through a root canal would completely heal in the next two weeks.
  4. That the weak molar beside that tooth would not be sensitive and would not need to go through a root canal too.
  5. That I would not have infections in my teeth, gums, bones, nerves, etc.
  6. That I would be intentional in taking care of what’s left in my set of teeth.
  7. That I would still faithfully walk in obedience to the Lord and have the desire to spend time with Him and His word. More than experiencing the pain in my teeth, I know that it would be more costly and painful for me to NOT walk with the Lord. May You be glorified in this situation; in my heart.

All of these things I pray in the name of Jesus. Amen!

Thank You, Lord, for answering these prayers, in advance! Because of who You are, I can smile even though my tooth is aching. :)

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About Me

My name is Nicole Obligacion and I started this blog because I was inspired by Hebrews 10:24 and Hebrews 3:13. I love to eat, cook, bake, read the Bible, and encourage. :)

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