A Health Update from Chris Arnzen

Greetings in the precious name of our Sovereign Lord, God, Savior & King, Jesus the Christ! I know there are some among you who are not on Facebook, or even if you are, some among you may not be aware of my recent health scare, so I thought I’d I’d post this update on my health in case you missed a long Facebook thread that was previously started by my dear friend, Michael A. Gaydosh, requesting prayer for me earlier this month.

The first week of July, 2 of my very close friends became increasingly alarmed by radical changes in my appearance & behavior, noticing I was not my typically jovial self, sluggish, more pale in complexion, easily winded & severely diminished in appetite. They insisted I go to a local health clinic for a medical exam, & would not take “no” for an answer. I reluctantly complied with their persistent demands, & am very grateful to God I did. Our Great Physician was truly merciful to me that day, & may have saved my life through these 2 annoyingly tenacious, unrelenting friends.

After an EKG the doctor who examined me told me I needed to go to the emergency room at the local hospital for a more in depth exam. After that 2nd exam that hospital then sent me to a larger hospital 30 minutes away for a cardiac catheterization in order to see a more vividly clear picture of how my heart was functioning. A healthy heart has an “Ejection Fraction” (EF) between 50 to 75 %. This indicates that the heart is pumping well & able to deliver an adequate supply of blood to the body & brain.My heart is functioning at only 15%. It turns out I had experienced congestive heart failure. We may never know how this heart damage occurred. It may have been due to my past severe, habitual abuse of alcohol & cigarettes, or may have been an illness that I fluffed off not realizing how serious it was (about 1 month before the COVID-19 pandemic became globally known I was sick with flu-like symptoms for nearly a week). But the cause of things like this often leaves the medical experts–even who specialize in cardiology–mystified. Thankfully, my cardiologist does not believe my particular circumstance requires surgery, at least for now. Time will tell how they will proceed treating me depending upon how well I respond to medications & lifestyle changes.

On top this unfortunate diagnosis was the disappointing news that I am a diabetic, likely having inherited the disease from my Dad & his mother. So, now, due to these 2 unpleasant illnesses, I have a whole new regimen of medications & diet restrictions (low sodium, low carb, limited fluid intake) that must be part of my daily routine.

Please pray that God continues to have mercy upon me as I press forward trying to be obedient to what the doctors expect of me, but, obviously, infinitely more importantly, obedient & faithful to Him & His Word. I intend to provide you with additional updates on how things are going.

I am very, very aware that there are multitudes out there (perhaps even some reading this) whose trials are infinitely greater than my own, & hope I don’t appear to be whining. I am truly extremely grateful to our God for His mercy toward me by bringing my frightening health condition to my attention before the consequences were far worse, irreversible, or even fatal. I am also forever grateful to all my brothers & sisters in Christ globally, both those whom I know very well & love much & those from whom I have never heard before, for your intense comfort & encouragement through your assurance that you are faithfully lifting up my name before our Lord’s Throne of Grace.

For those who are led to help financially support the work of my daily radio talk show, either for the very first time or to continue in your ongoing, faithful & generous giving, please go to IronSharpensIronRadio.com/support (then click “Click To Donate Now!”). Our financial need is great at this time so whatever you can give will be a blessing of incalculable measure.

Have a very safe, happy, healthy, & Heavenly blessed weekend & Lord’s Day. Grace & peace.

In His grip,

Chris Arnzen

c/o Iron Sharpens Iron Radio

243-B South Hanover Street

2nd Floor, Suite 2-R

Carlisle, PA 17013-3957