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| Oops! |
You
will keep in perfect peace those whose minds are steadfast, because they trust
in you. Trust in the Lord forever, for the Lord, the Lord himself, is the Rock
eternal.
Isaiah 26:3-4
I did something embarrassing
Sunday afternoon. Something I haven’t done since I was about five years old. I
tripped and fell. In public. Where everyone could see.
We were at the dirtbike track
where Josh rides. Maybe my baseline frayed dirtbike nerves had gotten the
better of me since two riders had already gone down with broken bones. Not a
typical Sunday afternoon at the track. Sure, wrecks happen. But this was a
first. While EMS attended to a kid with a broken ankle, another guy crashed
into a downed rider and fractured his femur.
 |
| Josh getting air |
So, I guess it’s easy to
understand how I wasn’t on top of my game after holding an IV bag and offering
encouraging words to a boy and his dad while EMS did their thing. Another
mother prayed while the boy clutched her hands and cried as workers removed his
boot to look at his twisted, broken ankle. It comforts me to know if I’m ever
absent when my child really needs me, other mothers would step in and do their
best.
The injured were transported to
the hospital via ambulance, and riders returned to the track. I’d caught my
breath, or so I thought, and continued to pray for the remaining riders. (I get
serious prayer time in at the track!) J
 |
| Two days later |
I turned to step onto a wooden
platform and tripped. I couldn’t just take a step to regain my balance like I
could on a level surface. I stopped abruptly with my shins pinned against the
platform while my upper body kept going. I went straight down, landing hard on
my hands and knees. I felt my right shoulder give, but thankfully, it didn’t dislocate.
Then I did what everyone does when they fall. I jumped up and acted like I
wasn’t hurt. LOL. Like my mom always says, my dignity hurt worse than anything
else. I’m sore now, of course, but I’m very thankful I didn’t break or
dislocate anything.
The
path of the righteous is level; you, the Upright One, make the way of the
righteous smooth. Yes, Lord, walking in the way of your laws, we wait for you;
your name and renown are the desire of our hearts. Isaiah 26:7-8
Wow! What a tremendous thought.
The path is level for the righteous. Cool. That means as a Christian, I don’t
have to worry about spiritually stumbling and falling. Right?
Sadly, no.
No matter how hard we try, we
can’t be righteous. We’re going to stumble spiritually and take falls,
sometimes hard falls. Self-imposed falls. Public and embarrassing falls. Hidden
falls where only our hearts sustain the pain.
Other times, life just reaches up
and grabs us by the ankle and brings us to our knees.
The good news is—Jesus’ blood
cleanses our unrighteousness. God’s comforting hand rests on our shoulder when
we’re lying on the ground, with skinned knees, a busted shoulder, or a broken
heart. Then He reaches for our hand and lifts us back up onto a level, smooth
path. His path. A solid path. As Isaiah proclaimed, He is the “Rock eternal.”
I pray that if you haven’t done
so, you’ll embrace the One True God and His Son, Jesus, who died that you might
be righteous in God’s sight. Romans 8:1 says there is no condemnation for those
who live in Christ Jesus. What a tremendous promise to claim!
What rough path have you traveled
recently? If you’d like prayer, please leave a comment so others can pray. You
can do so anonymously if you prefer, or email me confidential requests. I’d
love to pray for you.
Would you take a moment to pray
for Hunter, a 10-year-old boy bitten in the face by his own dog a few weeks
ago? The bite took half his face off. By the grace of God, the tear duct and
nasal passage were intact, and doctors were able to re-attach his face. Over
2000 stitches. This little boy and his family desperately need our prayers as
he goes through a difficult healing process!
May God richly bless each of you
as you seek to discover His path for your life.
Shalom,
Laura
✞
