The other day I remembered something that happened to me some 12 to 13 years ago. I was in a meeting with several of my colleagues in the company boardroom when, in adjusting my chair, I hit my knee on the leg of the table.
It’s important that I set some context before carrying on with the story. When I was at school, despite what my husband and children may think, I was athletic. 😊 Unfortunately, I got injured whilst training for an impending school athletics competition aged sixteen. The strange thing was that I jumped over and cleared the hurdle but when I landed, my left knee gave way. Since then, I have battled with challenges with my knees (the right knee also got messed up compensating for the left knee) including undergoing two knee operations on the left knee. The second knee operation was a major one with “bits” cut and moved about and a screw inserted to hold it all in place. That screw remained in my knee for 19 years. I am still believing God for healing o, so please pray for me. 😊🙏
Ehen…. now we are together on this knee matta…. So I didn’t just hit my knee, I hit the area of my knee where the screw was. The last thing I remember immediately after the bump was me grasping my knee and silently praying, “Oh Lord, please don’t let me cry in front of everyone. This really really hurts but I can’t cry!”
The next thing I recall was me lying flat on my back on the floor with my colleagues bent over me and someone trying to remove my shoes. My next thought? No! No! Not the shoes! Lord, I have corn pads on! I don’t want them to see my corn pads! 😂 😂 😂
I am constantly fascinated by us human beings! There I was recovering from a fainting episode and my biggest concern was my colleagues seeing my corn pads! Really?! Is there no end to our propensity to vanity?! 😂 😂 😂
I remembered this occurrence when I recently wrote a post about the day I lost my father. Immediately after hearing the news I had this strange strong desire to lie prostrate on the ground and cry from the very depths of my heart. Yet, when I finally found somewhere to go and all that was available was grass and hard exterior concrete floor, I “fixed up!” Suddenly, sitting in a chair, overlooking the Lagos lagoon, seemed a more fitting way to cry. 😃
The Yorubas have a saying that can be loosely translated to, “As you are crying, make sure you can still see.”
Yet, sometimes we forget. We allow ourselves to get so consumed with the challenges of the day that we forget to look forward. We forget that: This too shall pass. We forget that we have fought and won many a battle in the past and shall continue to do so until we transition to the next life.
So, the next time life suckers you one, look up! Look up at the One who has paid the price for everything you will ever require in life; the One who has gone ahead of you. By all means, cry if you need to. But as you are crying, keep furiously wiping away your tears so you can see the way forward clearly.
Reflections and prayers
- What challenge have you been facing that seems like it will last forever?
- Ask the Lord for His thoughts on the situation.
- Also ask Him to give you the grace, wisdom and strength to “go through”.
- Pray for the peace of the Lord to guard your heart and mind.
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