Both legs, are you kidding me?
I let Pam out at the door of Cracker Barrel as I went to park the car. She could get our name on the list so we wouldn’t have to wait to be seated (I was hungry). When I came in she was hanging onto a clothes rack with the look of extreme anguish on her face. She had fallen down upon entering the restaurant and was experiencing severe pain as a result. Well, forget about having lunch, now we were on our way to the emergency room. X-rays revealed that she had fractures in both ankles. Pam was now equipped with a boot on one leg, a cast on the other and crutches. If you have never seen Pam on crutches, let me just say it would be good material for a Halloween horror flick. It’s a frightening thing to behold. So our only option was a wheelchair (non-motorized of course, that would be another safety issue altogether).
Here is the crazy thing about all this. Pam was either bed or chair bound, she could not walk. So while she got to sit in a chair all day I was going through hell. I mean there’s laundry, dishes, meals, beds to be made, cleaning to be done, errands to run, shopping and waiting on my incapacitated wife. All she could do was sit in that chair and notice every speck of dust anywhere in the house, dirt on the floor, or anything misplaced. I was afraid to walk through the living room because invariably when doing so there would be at least one slat of our Venetian blinds that was crooked. Life lesson,,, Venetian blinds are part of the curse! Ok, so Pam had two broken legs but this is not just about her, what about me? It’s all about me.
The real life lesson is this: The things that happen to us, what we do or don’t do has an effect on everyone around us and it continually expands, like ripples on a pond that never stop. Absolutely EVERYTHING that happens to you and everything that you do, good or bad, has an infinite effect on everyone in your life and beyond. This principle is especially true of sin. One of the most damnable lies of the devil is the one that says “I am only hurting myself. It’s my life so it’s ok as long as I don’t hurt anyone else.” It’s a lie, a huge destructive lie, one which we all tell ourselves to some degree. “If no one knows about this then I am only hurting myself.” What a lie from the pit of hell. It robs us of our destiny in God. It steals kills and destroys, not only from the individual but from every relationship in their life, particularly from the people they love or that love them.
The process of Celebrate Recovery is hugely successful in uncovering these lies in our lives that plague us and those we love. When the truth comes it brings healing, restoration and recovery.
Now in this case it was an accident, Pam broke both of her legs, not my legs, but it had a profound affect on me! Albeit not necessarily all bad, I learned how to turn on the dishwasher, the washing machine, the dryer, and make the bed. It was a painful experience for the both of us! I also learned to keep those dang blinds straight.
God never wastes a hurt. A friend of mine made the statement, “Jim, just look how Pam had to suffer for God to teach you new things.”
Truth is she was great, a real trooper! On more than one occasion she had swept and mopped the entire floor as well as many other household chores, all from the confines of a wheel chair!
What happens to you affects other people!!! Hurt, injury, dysfunction, roll into the lives of everyone around you. It’s more than a ripple effect; it’s more like a tsunami! This is true for good things or bad.
We thank you again for the all good you do in support of this ministry, it is having a dramatic impact on many lives.
Overcome evil with good,
Jim & Pam