by Bob Wade
Four days after the last game (last season) my son felt a pain in his elbow. He was just going out to play catch, to loosen his arm up. Four days before he had struck out 9 batters and hit a home run; he was feeling great as was I, his dad. Then something happened, something that in our wildest dreams we would have never imagined; he hurt his elbow.
I’ll be completely honest with you, my wife and I had always prided ourselves on being the parents who where different, we didn’t let our son play in all the travel tourneys, or all the showcases; and he was asked on a regular basis. We were the parents that demanded, he rest, not throw many curveballs (he only threw two in his last game over 6 innings of work), and not play too much. We didn’t want him burned out, we wanted him to enjoy high school, still be a kid, and go to school dances. Yet now, the Doctor is telling us he has a tear in his Ulnar Collateral Ligament.
The Doctor actually kept us in the exam room for over an hour while he quickly saw the rest of his patients. His first words to us were “how committed to pitching are you?” I don’t know if you have ever experienced something as sobering as that. For a fifteen year old who loves the game and wants to play for pay some day this is about like hearing you have cancer.
You know, it’s in moments like this our true character is revealed. It made me think about a statement someone shared with me years ago at Hume Lake, a Christian camp in California. It went like this “You’ll never know about the strength of your anchor until you’re in the storm”
Nobody wants to be in a storm like this, yet they come. Let’s be honest, it’s a storm when one of your kids gets hurt or sick, or when the Doctor gives you news you did not want to hear. It’s a storm, when you can’t pay your bills, or your spouse walks out on you. Nobody wants any of these, but they come, no one is immune.
I am far from perfect, but I am blessed to have a great anchor in life. I have a great wife who loves me, great kids and family. But truthfully, my anchor is deeper than this; my anchor is in my personal relationship with Jesus Christ. You see, I believe the Bible when it tells me God loves me, knows me, cares for me, and ultimately will take me to be with Him someday in heaven. I believe this so much, that I have committed my life to helping others know and experience this same hope and love.
The last few months have been all about rehabbing our son’s arm. He has built up the muscles around the elbow and is now throwing again. (Without pain) We came to learn that his tear was slight and in the best possible place a tear could be, and though we are not out of the woods yet (he won’t throw off a mound until November), He appears to be healed up completely; but if he is not? Well, we have our anchor, do you? You can. Jesus told us how to get the right anchor, he said “For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life.” (John 3:16)
Jesus is an anchor you can count on now, tomorrow, forever.
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