I was almost killed by a reckless driver on June 22, 2002. I had to go to the hospital or I would’ve died within 24 hours. A very skilled surgeon fixed my ruptured colon and today I feel “good as new.” This part of modern medicine, emergency room care, is a vital part of our nation’s health care system, and we need it.
Chronic disease care, however, is a different story. This constitutes about 90% of modern medicine today and typically uses drugs or surgery to manage symptoms, NOT to fix root causes. This type of medicine actually creates problems rather than solving them.
Steve Plog and Jerry de Gier
No one knows this better than Jerry de Gier, who has been tremendously blessed by the ministry of Our Little Market and the healing Christ has given him through it. I’ve had many conversations with Jerry about this and have turned these into an interview to make his story fresh.
Steve: You were pretty sick several years ago, Jerry. What happened?
Jerry: First of all this was NOT normal for me. I was not a sickly child nor frequently sick as an adult. I grew up on a farm in Minnesota and would get up at 5:30 am every morning to milk the cows and do the chores. I’d be off to school by 8 am and then back in the afternoon to do my homework and more chores until about 7:00 pm every night.
Steve: Did you enjoy farm life?
Jerry: No, I hated it. But it taught me a strong work ethic for which I’m still grateful. It also provided me with good nutrition which contributed to a strong constitution. We ate and drank lots of raw dairy products from our own cows including raw cheese, raw butter, raw cream, raw milk, and of course our own organic vegetables and eggs, as well as fresh chicken and raw cured beef.
Steve: So what went wrong?
Jerry: Well, over the years I strayed from my nutritional roots and adopted a typical American diet consisting of refined and processed foods. That affected me some, but what really hurt was going to the doctor about 10 years ago for a routine physical. The physician discovered that I had elevated blood pressure and said he could fix it with medication. I’m a 100% kind of guy so I decided to do everything he told me. Over a three-year span, he put me on five different medications. Not only the high blood pressure drug, but also a drug for asthma, a drug for acid reflux, a drug for my prostate, and then one for eczema.
Steve: Did these meds help?
Jerry: NO! The first thing that happened was that I got dizzy, almost constantly. Then I developed a host of other problems including nausea, aching joints, and nonstop tiredness. I was so dizzy one day I fell over just trying to get out of bed. I was barely able to keep working and used up all my sick pay, every year.
Steve: What did the doctor say?
Jerry: He said, “Well, your medication is balanced so I guess you’re just getting older.” “Older!” I thought. I started researching my prescriptions and immediately found that two of my drugs had “dizziness” as a side effect. My doctor never told me this; I don’t think HE even knew. And when he wanted to put me on a sixth drug to lower my cholesterol, I said, “NO.” Fortunately I had a wise chiropractor who, in December, 2010, said, “You’re way too young to be on all these meds, Jerry. Go see Dr. Rosann Volmert. She’s a nutritionally minded D.O. (Doctor of Osteopathy), and she can get you well.”
Steve: Did she prescribe drugs?
Jerry: No, she gradually took me off ALL of them and told me, instead, to come here, to Our Little Market, and start buying healing foods. I started drinking and eating raw milk, raw cream, raw cheese, raw butter, and raw sauerkraut, as well as grass-fed meats and wild caught fish. Soon I had our own soy-free eggs and meat from back yard chickens that we purchased. Oh, and she had me start taking raw, fermented cod liver oil.
Steve: Wow, what a switch. How do you feel now?
Jerry: Great! Within six months my blood pressure came back to normal, my triglycerides, which had been way too high, have been cut by 2/3, and that’s eating a high saturated fat diet. I’ve also lost 27 pounds, have no asthma, no acid reflux, no joint pains, and LOTS of energy. I’m even going hiking in the mountains again, something which I love but had to give up when I was sick.
Steve: So will you ever go back?
Jerry: No way. I really feel that the kinds of foods I get from Our Little Market have saved my life and shown me how God can heal us and keep us well today. I’ve also SO appreciated the community of believers that I’ve found here. I’ve never been with a group of people that is so loving and caring. They’re like a second family to me.
Although Jerry is a full-time church pastor and administrator, he takes time off several times a month to serve as a volunteer for Our Little Market. His enthusiasm, wisdom, and skill have allowed me to transfer some administrative roles to him, freeing me to develop other untapped areas including a future ministry we’ll be calling New Siloam Ministries. More on this later.
Once again, we thank you from the bottom of our hearts for your faithful prayers and financial support that makes this unique and important ministry possible. We couldn’t do it without you!
Still followin’ Jesus,
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