“But now you must put them all away: anger, wrath, malice, slander, and obscene talk from your mouth. Do not lie to one another, seeing that you have put off the old self with its practices and have put on the new self, who is being renewed in knowledge in the image of its Creator.” ~ Colossians 3:8-10
We had a swing set in our back yard.
I would play on that set for hours at the time, and it was just a swing set to most people. It was so much more for me. Sometimes it was a castle under siege and I was the princess with the magical wand fighting off the swarms of evil doers. Other times it was the underground hideout of the Ninja Turtles, where Rafael, Donatello, Leonardo and Michelangelo (I always took that part) would go for pizza and rest after our intense battles. And sometimes it was a recording studio for my many, many original songs that would later be performed for my family.
I never thought something I loved so much could cause me so much pain until the day I was swinging like a monkey going from vine to vine. I lost my grip and landed on the ground.
I hurt all over. It knocked the wind out of me, but other than some bruises and some dirt mixing with all the tears, my parents did not observe any serious injury.
But there was something wrong that we could not see.
Days passed and little observances were made about the funny way I was holding my arm, or the slight whimpering when my arm was suddenly moved. Still, it did not seem like much was wrong. I was not crying about the pain and the arm wasn’t swollen.
A couple of weeks later, on a friend’s play set, I attempted to do the same, gravity-defying flip that I watched my older sister and friend do on the rings. They looked like acrobats, and I wanted to be one too.
So I gripped the rings, pushed off the ground, and started to flip through the air.
But that was as far as my acrobatic career ever got.
This time, my parents rushed me to the doctor, and x-rays showed that my wrist was broken...for the second time. The monkey bar fall originally broke it and since some time had passed, it was already healing when it snapped the second time at my friend’s house. Looking back, the signs were all there that the arm was broken all along. But the signs were so small, we elected to ignore them.
People trying to follow Christ usually wind up with a few breaks along the way, too. But if the signs of trouble are “small,” we tend to ignore them. Maybe we miss a time of Bible study justifying it by saying we are too “busy.” It could be a missed opportunity to meet with other believers. It could even be a grudge, some wrong that we have not forgiven.
These seemingly small things can all be signs that something bigger is wrong. As a new creation in Christ, a believer should begin to look, act, and think more and more like Christ. If there is a bump in that journey of transformation and sanctification, then it may be time for an examination. Is there an area of un-confessed sin that needs to be addressed? Is there something you promised God that you have kept for yourself?
There are countless ways to wind up with fractures in our relationship with God. But if we’re really going to follow Him, we cannot follow our sinful flesh nature at the same time. These are contradictory ways of living and it just does not work. Got a “break” in your relationship? You can ignore it if you want, but sooner or later, you’ll hear a SNAP ... and it’s going to hurt.
If we had gone to the doctor after the first fall, I would not have gotten hurt on the second fall. A cast and some clear instructions would have kept me from playing acrobat and allowed my wrist to heal properly.
Likewise, if we come in for mending at the first sign of trouble in our spiritual lives, the healing process can happen a lot faster. Some part of your walk with the Lord hurting today? He is the healer. He can make it better.
But you have got to make the visit.
