fractured

Posted on July 17, 2009 by Scott Turner

a few days ago, i fractured my right ankle and tore some ligaments.  thankfully (after seeing a specialist) there is no long-term damage and i should be back to full strength in about 4-5 weeks.  while i was at the er (for 4 hours), i was amazed by all the different people that were streaming in - all with serious, but different needs.  my heart broke as i watched each person struggling:

  • a baby that was having trouble breathing (gasping and shaking)
  • an elderly lady (who looked about 95) that could not stop vomiting (an uncontrollable stream) - her frail husband weeping and holding her
  • a young guy (21 or so) that was spitting and coughing up blood - ready to pass out at any moment 
  • a girl that had overdosed - her mom panicking and yelling at the hospital staff
  • 2 drunk guys - one was forcefully shoved in by police officers and then handcuffed to his bed - the nurse knew him by name and she was obviously bothered he was back - later she told me that he shows up about 3 times a month
  • a lady (that weighed about 450 pounds) that was unconscious - they successfully revived her and rushed her into surgery
  • too many other people to talk about - various ages, various ethnicities, various needs
even with my ankle throbbing and swelling (up to 2.5 times its normal size) - it was easy to get my eyes off of myself and to see that there were people surrounding me with needs way greater than my own.  then it hit me - THIS IS WHAT LIFE IS ALL ABOUT, THIS IS WHAT CHRISTIANS ARE SUPPOSED TO DO WITH THIER LIVES.  we will always have needs of our own, but we can never forget to “lift up our eyes” and see the hurting and helpless people all around us.  i was devastated by the pain and suffering i saw.  i felt helpless to do anything for them.  i was so thankful for the nurses, orderlies and doctors that were scrambling to meet every need.  i got a vision of what the local church is all about - it’s about helping anyone with anything that is plaguing their souls - it’s about bringing freedom to the oppressed - it’s about healing the hidden wounds that people carry around on the inside - it’s about the recovery of and restoration of broken dreams - it’s about loving and caring for anyone that comes.
Jesus said, “God’s Spirit is on Me; he’s chose Me to preach the message of the good news to the poor, sent me to announce pardon to prisoners and recovery of sight to the blind, to set the burdened and battered free.”  in psalms 147:3 it says, “God heals the brokenhearted and bandages their wounds.”  
i pray God opens up our eyes to see the fractured lives all around us.  may we live beyond ourselves (and our own pain) and bring healing and a touch of God to the hurting and oppressed.

Comments

  • Mark Rampulla on July 17th, 2009

    Good stuff Scott…I pray you heal up quickly!

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