What Happened When I Fell on the Bridge

Several weeks ago, while I was running on the paved trail by my house, my foot hit an unseen knot on the wooden bridge and I went flying—headfirst—onto the bridge.

I mostly landed on my left knee and the left side of my face and forehead, which resulted in some significant bruises and abrasions, along with a sizable goose egg above my left eye.

Several people on the trail stopped to see if I needed help. They urged me to call my doctor in case I had a concussion. One sweet lady even walked back to her house, returned with her car and drove me home.

This all could have been very embarrassing, but along with inheriting my dad’s propensity for falling, I also seemed to have inherited his tendency not to get embarrassed much.

I fell, but it was an accident. I looked bad, but so would anyone else who unexpectedly crash landed on his or her head on a wooden bridge.

Mostly, I was grateful. That nothing was damaged too badly, although it took a solid week for the painful abrasions on my knee to heel and several more weeks for the lump on my head to go away completely. That, after consulting with my doctor’s office and monitoring myself for neurological symptoms, it didn’t appear that I had a concussion.  That, even though the inside of my eye turned black several days later, I didn’t break my nose in the fall.

And also that there are still kind people in the world who stop to help a middle-aged woman sprawled out on a bridge.

We hear so much about all the hatred, outrage and angst that readily pours forth these days. It happens online, of course, but also in person—sometimes subtly, sometimes not.

But there’s still good in the world. There is.

And, as Samwise Gamgee tells Frodo in The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers, “It’s worth fighting for.”

What that fight looks like in real life differs from person to person. But it starts with what we think about. What we read, listen to and watch.

We can focus on the bad—there’s certainly enough of that to keep us occupied for a good long while. Or, as we pray for God’s will to be done on earth as it is in heaven, we can turn our hearts, minds, eyes and ears toward things that are true, honorable, just, pure, lovely, commendable, morally excellent and praiseworthy. (Philippians 4:8)

I don’t care how much pressure anyone feels to keep up with all the latest things on social media and YouTube. The truth of the matter is, nobody can make us watch or read material that we don’t want to watch or read.

It’s up to us to choose well and wisely, every day. And if we fill our heads with good, there’s a pretty good chance that what flows from our mouths and lives also will be good.

It’s not easy, but it’s possible. Worth fighting for, even.

Some—perhaps many—of us are called to do more, to go farther, to dig deeper. To boldly speak up, to run for office, to stand firm in the public square or in the marketplace, to graciously take unpopular stands even when every aspect of our culture is going the opposite direction.

But we’re all called to fight on our knees, to keep our eyes fixed on Jesus (rather than our Instagram stats) as we shine the light of God’s love and truth in this crazy world.

There is good in the world, and it is worth fighting for.

Let’s fight together, shall we? And when we stumble and fall—as we all will eventually, one way or another—let’s help each other up. That might be the best way we can show a hurting world what real love looks like.

♥ Lois

P.S. I’m linking up this week with #tellhisstory, InstaEncouragements, Recharge Wednesday, Let’s Have Coffee, Inspire Me Monday, #HeartEncouragement and Grace & Truth.