I fell. Down I went. I felt it happening but there was nothing I could do to stop it.
I was out for a run one day with a squadmate. It was a beautiful sunny afternoon in Sunyani, Ghana. Not too hot or humid, perfect for an afternoon run in the sun. Running is one of my favorite things to do and it’s been a privilege and a true gift from the Lord to have been able to run in every country of the race so far. And this run felt extra special. Normally, I run at least a few times a week, but this week our schedule was so full I’d not been able to go on a single run. So as I set out with my squadmate, I was ready for a good long one, hoping for at least 5 miles.
We were barely past a mile into the run when it happened. We were on a narrow stretch along the side of the road. A group of kids were coming toward us so I was looking up to keep from running into them, and not looking to where my stride would land. My foot hit a narrow ledge, my ankle rolled beneath me, and my knee and palm bore the full weight of my fall.
My first thought, “Dang it! That’s the end of that run. It was just getting good!” Priorities.
My second thought, “That’s going to leave a mark…”
I looked at my ankle as it started to swell. Shoot. I looked at my hand as it started to bleed. Dang.
My squadmate, Joey, came to assess the damage. I didn’t answer for a second, needing to take inventory of all my parts. “I don’t think anything is broken, but I won’t be finishing this run,” I said. I was slightly in shock of what had just happened. I can’t remember the last time I’ve fallen on a run, but here I was, sitting in the dirt in Ghana. It was humbling. I knew I couldn’t walk the mile home on my ankle so Joey hailed a taxi to bring us back.
Returning to the house, my friends were champs. They grabbed money to pay the taxi, they washed my wounds, got me ice, bandages, water, and wrapped me up. I felt so cared for in that moment. Living in community can be hard at times, but moments like these remind me of the immense blessing it is to live together in the love of Christ.
***For any concerned moms, aunts, grandmas, friends, I’m a-okay!! It wasn’t anything Neosporin and a good Ace-wrap couldn’t handle. No problem. 🙂 ***
As the days went by, I found myself regularly running my fingers over the bandage on my hand, a constant reminder of what had happened. And though it was healing, beneath the bandage I could still feel the torn skin. There was no way to forget my fall, no way to forget my friends coming to my rescue, no way to forget my need for healing, because the memory of these things was literally graven on my hand to see and feel in every moment.
Then the Lord reminded me of Isaiah 49:16 where he says,
“See, I have graven your name on the palms of my hands.”
That’s going to leave a mark.
The Lord God, King of the universe and all of creation, has engraved YOUR name on his hands. He has carved your memory into his flesh which can never be forgotten. He has marked himself with an everlasting reminder of his love for you.
It doesn’t end there. Just like my fall during my run, all of creation has fallen in sin because we were focused on something other than the path God had placed before us. We need someone to come to our rescue, to heal us. But, God has never forgotten us; we’re written on his hands. And so he sent his Son, Jesus, to be our rescue and our healing. Jesus CHOSE to take our fall FOR us. He chose to be humbled. He took the fall and died on a cross to cover all our sin, our shame, our fear, our doubt, our defeat. Three days later, he got back up, because even a fall into death could not hold him. Now, he bears the scars on the palms of his hands that are a constant reminder of his love for us and the rescue, healing, and freedom he brings. Unlike me, God didn’t fall on accident. His bloody hands didn’t come by mistake. He chose the marks on his hands in love for you and for me, so we wouldn’t have to take the fall for our own sin.
Every scar tells a story. His tell the story of a God who was willing to come to earth and take the fall for us so we could be rescued, healed, and forever live in community with God through the love of Christ.
God has not forgotten you. It would be impossible to do so. He has graven us on his hands to see and feel in every moment. Your name is written on his hands. And he has set a path before you to run. Run it. Do not be distracted by the world lest your foot should slip, but look to the path he has set in Jesus who leads to his Kingdom. Praise be to him, the author and perfecter of our faith.
When we truly realize this and live in this way in the world, well, that’s going to leave a mark.
