Articles
Getting Back Up Again
The well-known pro football coach Vince Lombardi once said, "It's not whether you get knocked down, it's whether you get up." Coach Lombardi was right, and he was right because (1) we are all going to get 'knocked down' at some point in our lives, and (2) what matters is, what do you do when you've been knocked down? Are you going to let that make you quit, or will you resolve to stand again?
I probably don't have to tell you that southeast Texas was recently 'knocked down' by Hurricane Harvey and the resultant flooding; some people are still 'down.' But they won't stay there. Some have already begun to stand up again, and still others are standing tall once again with both feet planted firmly on the ground, waiting for the next hit. Sometimes, others had to help them up; sometimes others had to encourage and motivate certain ones to get up, but they did. And I have no doubt in my mind that if they get hit again, they will rise to stand again. They are a resilient group of people, and those who came to our aid are all kinds of wonderful for their efforts.
But surely there are some spiritual lessons we can gain from all this! Surely, we can learn from the resolve of some to never give up, the efforts they put forth to rise again, and the commitment to be even better prepared next time [and there will be a next time]. Let's consider some points we should think about when we, as disciples of Jesus Christ, are 'knocked down' by our spiritual adversary or just life itself.
Everyone Takes A Hit. Sometimes, I think we remember well the fact that all who are outside of Christ “have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Rom. 3:23), but then forget that, as Christians, “If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us” (1 John 1:8). The dangerous thing about this thinking is that we are halfway thinking we will never get touched by temptation or sin, much less get knocked down. We too often think, "That will never happen to me," or, "I would never do that."
And then BOOM! We find ourselves lying flat on our spiritual backs, wondering what happened!
Yes, as Christians, we will face temptations and, yes, we will sometimes sin. But instead of deceiving ourselves, thinking we don't or won't, we should face the reality, as Paul put it, “No temptation has overtaken you except such as is common to man” (1 Cor. 10:13), and as Peter put it, we need to be aware and alert to our spiritual adversary, and “Resist him, steadfast in the faith, knowing that the same sufferings are experienced by your brotherhood in the world” (1 Pet. 5:8, 9). Let us acknowledge what Peter and Paul wrote by inspiration: (1) We won't be the only ones in the world who have ever been knocked down, and (2) our own brothers and sisters in Christ will be knocked down, too.
It is simply naïve or even foolish to think that, as Christians, we won't ever get 'knocked down.' Temptations and sin will knock us down; trials will knock us down; life will sometimes knock us down. Be wary when you start thinking it will never happen to you; it is then that your enemy is most likely to come up behind you and surprise you with a lethal blow.
Acknowledging the Failure Is of Utmost Importance. For those who have been recently knocked down by the hurricane and flooding, I can assure you that someone is trying to find out what, exactly, happened, and if some of the devastation could have been avoided. They will be looking at the series of events that led up to the devastation and trying to find some areas where they might have been better prepared, drainage could have been better designed, or maybe even the alerts sent out earlier. Every aspect of the disaster will be scrutinized, and ideas about potential future disaster avoidance or solutions to existing problems will be sought. The worst thing that could be done is to simply throw up our hands and say, "Oh, well. Things like this are just going to happen and we can't do anything about it!"
Spiritually speaking, we must learn from our weaknesses, mistakes, and poor choices, too. If we should be knocked down because we succumbed to a temptation, we must acknowledge “each one is tempted when he is drawn away by his own desires and enticed” (Jas. 1:14); I cannot blame someone else for my failure to resist temptation! I must learn from my weakness and strengthen myself in that area where I am weak. If my schemes to avoid temptation and sin didn't work, I cannot stick with the old ways and expect different results; I need a new plan!
I also must admit that my failure is a failure; sin is not merely an indiscretion, not just 'one little mistake,' and not 'harmless.' When King Saul was confronted by his sin, he at first claimed to have done God's will (1 Sam. 15:13), and only when told his kingdom would be taken away did he admit he had sinned (1 Sam. 15:24). Contrast that with David who, when confronted by Nathan for his sin, simply said, “I have sinned” (2 Sam. 12:13). One was willing to admit his sin and do whatever was necessary to be right again in God's sight, and the other kept denying it until his world was turned upside-down. Who do you think pleased God?
Get Back Up. On the football field, players get knocked down all the time; the ones who are best at the game get up as quickly as possible so they can continue to contribute to the team's success. In life, it is the ones who, after facing serious setbacks, quickly get back up and get back to the routine that are successful. Spiritually speaking, we must also 'get back up' after being knocked down by trials or by sin — if we desire success and desire to please God.
Getting back up requires that we acknowledge our sins or weaknesses, strengthen ourselves in that area, and then get back out on the battlefield and fight again. Getting back up is what we do if we want to win; giving up is what we do when we don't care about defeating our enemy or pleasing the Lord. Getting back up is what we do, even though we know we might fall or get knocked down again; we strengthen ourselves, seek help from others, and seek the strength that comes from the Lord.
Remember, we are not in this race of life alone, and we are not in the battle against our spiritual adversary alone. Our strength comes from Christ Jesus (Phil. 4:13), but it also comes from our fellow believers. The writer of Hebrews exhorted the early disciples to “strengthen the hands which hang down, and the feeble knees” (Heb. 12:12), and Paul urged disciples to “pursue the things which make for peace and the things by which one may edify another” (Rom. 14:19).
Will we get 'knocked down' as disciples? Most certainly. Is it a failure? Yes, it is. Is it the end, and are we a failure? Most certainly not! Our enemy would have us believe that if we ever stumble and fall, our spiritual life has come to an end. He would have us believe that when we fall, we can't get back up! He would have us believe that when we fall, there is no means of getting back up.
Don't believe the father of lies, your spiritual adversary — the devil. God forgives those who repent and confess their sins. You can get back up. You must get back up if you want to defeat the enemy. Sometimes, you just need to reach out for help. —— Steven Harper
