When I played professional baseball… okay, actually, I never played past peewee league, but I remember what happened when a player got hurt (which was pretty often in peewee). We would all “take a knee.” When one player was down, all of us paused what we were doing so the coaches could attend to the injured.
We modern Christians struggle with the concept of taking a knee. We’re too used to moving. We keep running, keep fighting, keep flailing wildly even when someone is injured. Even when we ourselves are injured.
But the Bible is pretty clear:
Be still, and know that I am God. ~ Psalm 46:10 NIV
It’s only when we slow down, take a knee, and allow the Great Physician to tend to our wounds or the wounds of those around us that we come away with an increased faith and confidence in the awesomeness of God.
I’ve learned that I have a tendency to think frantically at times. When I’m stressed, hurt, or frustrated, my mind races for solutions. In those moments, I’m vulnerable to suggestion from all kinds of voices that aren’t speaking truth. When I’m running hurt, my injuries just lead to more injuries and things get complicated.
But when I stop, take a knee, and bring my mind to a halt, God is able to apply his healing truth. Sometimes this means seeking answers in God’s Word. At other times, it means just sitting with my eyes closed, saying nothing, and waiting on the Spirit of God to remind me of the appropriate truth from God for the moment.
It might be that you need to take a moment, or a day, or a week, to press pause on your life to listen. It might even be that God so arranges things around you that you’re forced to do so beyond your own will. When those times come, take a knee. The Healer needs space to work.
