Another Thursday evening was spent at rugby practice. The tough session was filled with hard tackles and intense wrestling. Rugby is a game of blood, sweat and tears, so everyone was training their fingers to the bone to prepare for game day. That was until a knee sprung up and smashed into my nose, causing a gush of blood to pour out. I stumbled to the sidelines, unable to see as tears filled my eyes and my face pounded from the swelling. With blood smeared across my face and got my hands on some tissue but it still didn’t stop the bleeding. Next to me, a pain-stricken teammate rolled on the floor, held onto his ribs and groaned in agony. Moving towards him helplessly, I attempted to stop my bleeding nose while asking how I could help him. The immense pain pounding across my face restricted me from helping at all as I managed to choke out a prayer.
“In… the name of… Jesus…”
I gave up as the teammate calmed down. He stood up, hand on his rib, got his things and left. I felt so helpless and weak, incapable of helping out a struggling teammate while suffering from my own injury. The bleeding eventually stopped as I cleaned up and left. In my car, I got a picture of the cross, with Jesus hanging on it- bloody, beaten, broken. Except, he wasn’t helpless, Instead, his brokenness was ‘heavenly’. His broken body on that cross was full of love and healing. Jesus’ death and resurrection gifted us with power and hope. I was speechless and spirit-filled, it was a heavenly moment. Praise God for that reminder of His Kingdom.
But He said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me. For the sake of Christ, then, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities. For when I am weak, then I am strong.
- 2 Corinthians 12:9~11
