Finding Peace in a Painful Position

I never would've thought playing the game I love would place me in the most painful position that I've ever been in. I tore the Patella Tendon in my left knee playing basketball on a Sunday afternoon. The pain was initially physical but the pain eventually became mental, anticipating the diagnosis of what occurred. Two days later, I learned that I had to face one of my biggest fears and have surgery to repair this injury. As my surgery approached, I got more nervous. Reflecting on this situation, my focus was primarily on the thought of having surgery and the pain to follow. Once I shifted my focused towards God, I became more relaxed, realizing that God would be there during every second of my surgery.

Finding peace in a painful position is one of the most difficult things to do, but keeping our focus and faith in God makes this easier. One way to find peace is to realize and remember who's in control of your situation. During a recent interview, Oprah Winfrey said "I don't know what the future holds but I know who holds the future" Peace is found once you realize that God is in control of your situation. You may be placed in a storm, but God is always the calm to our storm. The word peace can be defined as the absence of mental stress and anxiety. When I realized that God would be in my operating room during my surgery, the fear and anxiousness of having surgery decreased. There's a reason that we walk by faith and not by sight. Your circumstances may tell you to worry, but your faith should tell you that God has everything under control. Reflecting on the current presidential campaign, it has been nothing short of extreme confusion and disorder, leaving most of us concerned about who will become our next president. Whether it's Hillary Clinton or Donald Trump, I want you to know that God will still be on the throne and in full control of everything. Knowing and fully understanding God's power will bring you peace in any situation.

Another way to find peace is to understand that God has prepared victory for us. If God told you that a million dollars was coming to you in 2017, would you still believe him if you spent ten months of the year in a financial struggle? If he told you that your favorite team would win the Super Bowl, would you question him if your team lost the first seven games of the season and their two best players? Again this is why we walk by faith and not by sight. Although we're in a painful position, we have to focus on the victory God promised us. This helped me tremendously after having surgery. I dealt with both mental and physical pain, but I knew it was temporary. We can't let a temporary situation distract us from a permanent savior who promised us victory. If God promised you something, take his word for it. The Good News Bible translation of Deuteronomy 20: 1-4 stated the following, "When you go out to fight against your enemies and you see chariots and horses and an army that outnumbers yours, do not be afraid of them. The LORD your God, who rescued you from Egypt, will be with you. Before you start fighting, a priest is to come forward and say to the army, ‘Men of Israel, listen! Today you are going into battle. Do not be afraid of your enemies, or lose courage, or panic. The LORD your God is going with you, and he will give you victory". Grasping this mindset will allow you to find peace; understanding that you will win your battle despite what the odds are!