A Broken Leg

My husband broke his leg ice skating this weekend requiring surgery and two nights at the hospital. The best part of the hospital stay for my 43 year old husband was having a nurse tell him it is good that he is young and athletic.

At home, the young athlete is recognizing how dependent he must be on others for a while. He’s doing great with the crutches. However, he has discovered that his young athletic arms and left leg get tired doing the work of the broken leg.

This led me to think about brokenness in the Body of Christ.

What do you do in your times of brokenness? Some cling to crutches to get by. Others are determined to grin and bear the pain alone. My husband could have refused to go to the hospital, lived with pain and never used his right leg to its full potential again. But he sought out appropriate help.

As a part of the Body of Christ, we may want to discount our personal brokenness. Doing so keeps us from healing properly. It also keeps the Body of Christ from being able to function at its full potential. Our brokenness affects more than just us. Fortunately, my husband is able to get around because he has strong arms and a healthy leg. Are you surrounded by healthy people who naturally step in to help?

Satan has successfully deceived many of us into viewing individualism and independence as positives. Our natural instinct is to not let our weakness show. In reality, it is in our brokenness that we are united with others.

We have lived in this town just over two months. Because of this broken leg, our relationships with neighbors and church acquaintances have grown a little deeper. Although our kids miss wrestling with daddy, they are enjoying being actively involved in caring for him.

The process of setting the foot in place was interesting. An aid held my husband’s upper leg while the doctor got on the bed and pulled the foot back in place. Later, a few screws and metal plates were placed via surgery. He is to keep all weight off the broken leg for several weeks and elevate it to reduce swelling.

Imagine the strength of the Body of Christ if we would allow others to get close enough to set the broken bone back in place; support one another like metal plates and screws; and elevate our wounds in such a way that reduces swelling.

It doesn’t matter how strong you are, if you are a Christ follower you are part of a Body that is much bigger than just you. If you are healthy, are you relieving the weight on the wounded? If you are wounded, are you in a safe place to elevate your brokenness while God restores you for the benefit of the whole Body?

I’ve pondered and edited this blog for a couple days now. This is not about responding to others needs or even allowing others to respond to ours. It’s about being united as a Body so that when crisis/brokenness happens, the Body responds naturally. The question for me and maybe for you is not about what we are doing but are we in strong relationships so that we can respond to others and they can respond to us, naturally?

Under his [Christ] direction, the whole body is fitted together perfectly. As each part does its own special work, it helps the other parts grow, so that the whole body is healthy and growing and full of love.

Ephesians 4:16 (NLT)