I had an argument with gravity this week and gravity won!
I’d found a dead snake on our lawn and, not wanting to hit it with the mower, I threw it in the field across the road. Well, it ended up wrapped around the barbed wire fence, looking pretty nasty hanging there. Not wanting to gross out the neighbors, I climbed up to take it down.
On my way back down the steep bank I tripped and fell, landing hard on my left side in the middle of the road. Dragging myself to the shoulder I assessed the damage. I’d torn the callus off the end of one of my fingers, banged up my knee and bruised my ribs.
Since then, everytime I breath, cough, laugh, sneeze, move (etc., etc.) my ribs give me a friendly reminder of my stupidity. The pain also reminds me I have a lot to be thankful for. If a car had come around the corner while I was laying in the middle of the road I would have been a PA pancake!
All of us fall at one time or another. Sometimes it’s a physical fall like mine, which leaves us bruised and bleeding. More often it’s a fall from grace, poor choices which leave us with scars on our hearts and our souls, overwhelming us with guilt and remorse.
Thankfully we do not have to remain in that condition. God tells us “Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and He will lift you up.” (James 4:10). No matter what we’ve done or how far we’ve fallen, “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” (1 John 1:9).
If this last week has left you bruised and bleeding, if every breath is a painful reminder of how far you’ve fallen, do not despair, do not give up. Instead, “Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and He will lift you up.” This morning, take Jesus’ hand and let Him direct your steps. Then, “when you walk your steps will not be hindered, and when you run, you will not stumble.” (Proverbs 4:12).
God bless and have a wonderful (and safe) Sabbath!