Gas Mask

Gib taught gospel doctrine today at church. He related the armor of God in Ephesians 6:13-18 to his personal protective equipment he uses at work. He works at a microbiology testing laboratory where they use ethylene oxide (EO) to sterilize medical devices. Gib discussed the danger of this toxic gas by describing EO. It is a colorless flammable and highly reactive gas. It's health and safety dangers are extensive in that it is carcinogenic and mutagenic. Lung injury, cancer, and nerve damage are a few of the symptoms of exposure. Circumstances sometimes require Gib to be exposed to moderate levels of EO, which is a considerable health concern. I often fear for Gib's health because of his chances of EO exposure. For protection, he wears a Darth Vadar mask which filters out the toxic gas, providing him with clean oxygen in the hostile, EO rich atmosphere. Gib was wearing his mask one day while working, as required by safety protocol. A new hire working in the same vicinity mistakenly exposed Gib to a large volume of EO. Without his proper personal protective equipment, the gas mask, Gib would have undoubtedly suffered serious lung and nerve damage and would have run the increased risk of cancer, reproductive problems and even death. Gib described his fear after the exposure and expressed how grateful he was to have chosen to follow protocol and wear his gas mask. He then related his protocol to wear personal protective equipment to the protocol layed out by the Lord, to "take unto you the whole armor of God" and how we have the choice to fortify ourselves against the "fiery darts of the wicked." While Gib's exposure to a large volume of EO was not expected, our exposure to temptations from the adversary are unquestionably inevitable. Gib said how thankful he was for his personal protective equipment at work that day and challenged the members of the class to fortify themselves against the exposure to the adversary by putting on the armor of God.