Surviving the Fall
Do not lie in wait, O wicked man, against the dwelling of the righteous; do not plunder his resting place; for a righteous man may fall seven times and rise again, but the wicked shall fall by calamity. Do not rejoice when your enemy falls, and do not let your heart be glad when he stumbles; lest the LORD see it, and it displease Him, and He turn away His wrath from him. Do not fret because of evildoers, nor be envious of the wicked; for there will be no prospect for the evil man; the lamp of the wicked will be put out. – Proverbs 24:15-20.
“His head was down, his feet were up, and he came whizzing by screaming.” Chris Hoyle had looked out her window just in time to see Ken Larsen on the way down from the top of a five-story building. Larsen survived the fall with no broken bones and was only bruised and scraped.
Ken Larsen’s frightening fall seems to be a picture of many of our lives, which for a variety of reasons may go out of control. Many of the prayer requests we receive are from those whose lives appear to be rapidly heading for a crash landing. Some have financial problems, health problems, marital problems, job problems, sin problems or a combination of problems. So what do you do when you find your life coming apart and you are falling?
Ken Larsen was on top of the building laying telecommunications cable. He was walking backward pulling on the cable and his co-worker was holding the spool feeding it out. When Ken stepped off the roof, he still had the cable in his hands. He held on gripping tighter and tighter which broke his fall. He landed on his feet even though much of the fall was headfirst. Meanwhile back on the roof his co-worker leaned against the spool of cable trying to slow the rate the cable fed out.
The only thing that will slow our fall is to hang onto God. In 1 Corinthians 15:58 we are told, “Therefore, my beloved brethren, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord….” To have a safe landing we must be steadfast, immovable in our confidence in God. It also helps as it did for Ken Larsen for others to be trying to slow our fall as well. It does make a difference when we do as the apostle exhorted us “that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks be made for all men…” (1 Timothy 2:1).
When you find yourself falling, coming apart at the seams – do what you know you ought to do. Live, as God would have you to live. Read the Bible, pray, go to church, and serve the Lord. When you are in a free fall that is not the time to turn away from what you know you ought to do. No, it is time to read your Bible more, pray more, go to church more, serve the Lord more, and strive with all your heart to live as you know that God would want you to live. At the very least, you will find peace, love, and joy in the midst of the pain and uncertainties of your life. Most likely, though, you will also find God picking up the pieces of your life and slowly putting everything back together.
(Discussion of how to survive when everything comes apart in your life.)