“Let us then approach God’s throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.”
A life-changing moment met a team of professional athletes during Monday Night Football last night. In the crux of the moment, a player reacted the way he has spent many years being trained to react in that moment. That player, Damar Hamlin, saw the runner with the football. He immediately raced to tackle him, and successfully brought him down to the ground, ending the play. He then jumped to his feet in a moment of celebration and joy, something he’s done hundreds of times during his life.
And then he completely collapsed on the field of play.
Within seconds he was surrounded by trainers and medical staff. It’s a scene not all that unfamiliar to those who watch professional football. Players are often hurt, as their bodies twist and turn in awkward contortions. It is a physical sport, and when two players collide violently at a high rate of speed, one generally becomes injured. It happens every week in the NFL.
What is foreign to the players and the fans in the stands at these events, however, is when the injured player lying on the ground is urgently being administered CPR.
The players understood the gravity of that moment. They were powerless. Not a single one of them could physically do anything to help their teammate. So they, along with their team staff, all huddled together, took a knee, placed their hands upon each others shoulders.
And they prayed.
Some of them were white, some of them were black, and some of them were hispanic. Each experienced different upbringings; coming from many towns, backgrounds, and cultures. Turns out that football isn’t the only thing they had in common.
They came together as a family of men, feeling utterly helpless and afraid for what their teammate was going through. And they prayed to God for comfort and healing.
The NFL rightly decided that the game would not continue. The only important thing that mattered in that moment was this young man’s life.
But that moment bore witness to the soul of every human being encountering a moment of extreme desperation. Something deep within them commanded them to cry out to God for help. Not a politician, nor a public figure, nor the man to their left and right, but to the Sovereign God Himself.
Today I pray for Damar Hamlin.
Former Blackout Artist 