My 59 year old sister-in-law is taking ice skating lessons. She always wanted to learn how to ice skate. She said the first lesson was “How to fall without breaking any bones.” The second lesson was “How to get back up.” Every now and then life will knock you down. But, just because you get knocked down doesn’t mean that you have to break any bones or stay down or stay broken or wallow in self-pity, nursing, cursing, and rehearsing your hurts. The truth is you can get back up. Life is not over. The Apostle Paul got knocked down and knocked around a lot. Listen to what he said in II Corinthians 4: 8-9, “We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed.” The Apostle Paul got back up because he had put his trust in Jesus Christ and he knew that no matter how hard the day would be, that Christ always had a beautiful future for him. He said in II Corinthians 4:17, “For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is temporary but on what is eternal.” The bottom line is when you get knocked down, look up and the Lord will help you get back up.
– Dr. Tim Thompson