“Get up, stretch your leg out, you have to move around so that your ankle doesn’t get stiff.”
That’s what my husband was saying to our 3rd child after she twisted her ankle during the 55 meters hurdle. You see, she still had one more race to run, the 200 meters. As she limped towards her father and I, there were tears in her eyes.
She said, “Mom I can’t run, it hurts and I’m in a lot of pain.”
My reply to her was “stop crying, you are going to be ok, but you must finish your last race, your team is depending on you.” For a minute, I thought…did I just tell my daughter who is crying and in pain to run her last race. Am I a bad mom for telling her to push pass her pain! For a quick moment so many thoughts went through my mind…I wanted to say many things to her none of which was run the race, but I realized that her team was depending on her to finish what she started. What was I thinking? RIGHT!
What I didn’t realize until later on that night, as I was reflecting on my day, is that it is through our pain that we persevere, we become stronger and resilient. This puts us in the position to become successful, it teaches humility, it teaches how to be compassionate, empathetic and love others, but most of all, it builds character!
My daughter did run her 200 meters race, no she didn’twin, she came in 3rd place, but I remember my husband cheering her on and saying you can make it, you’re almost there…push a little bit more you’re almost there. As I listened to my husband encouraging words to our daughter, I thought about how God encourages us to keep going, to take the next step, to push pass our insecurities, to be encouraged during our difficult circumstances and to stand when it seems all else fails.
Acts 23:11 says “The Lord encourages His Servants with His presence in their difficult circumstances, His praise for their past service, and His promise of their future service.” Just like my husband encouraged our daughter during the 200 meters race, God also encourages us to continue this race called Life. HE is right next to us, sometimes gently pushing and empowering us in HIS love. Isn’t it great to know that our Heavenly Father speaks courage over us? HE is a very present help in the time of trouble (Psalms 46:1).
by Pastor Viatta Carter