Ankle Update

Well, I went to the orthopedist yesterday and got some great news. There aren't any torn ligaments in my ankle. It was just a high ankle sprain (which is a lot worse than a normal ankle sprain) and a bone contusion (which means when I did it two bones hit together and bruised each other). The only real dilemma that I may face is if the bone contusion actually caused one of the bones to chip off in which case I'll probably have to have arthroscopic surgery to take the bone chip out. But, the doctor doubts that will be the case. So, the doctor told me to start walking on it and lose the crutches as soon as it feels strong enough b/c no further damage would occur. Needless to say, I woke up this morning and decided that I was ready to lose the crutches. So I wrapped an ACE bandage, strapped on a "floppy" ankle brace, strapped on my stirrup ankle splint/brace, and somehow put on a tennis shoe. Let's just say, I now know how Kiley felt playing basketball. But I've been walking all morning...very cautiously and with a bit of a limp.

One Body, Many Parts

In the twelfth chapter of 1 Corinthians, Paul writes to the church in Corinth about the “Body of Christ” and how the church is one body made up of many parts. Many of us have read or heard Paul’s message that God has arranged the parts in the body, every one of them, just as he wanted them to be. Paul is teaching the church in Corinth that it is good for the members of the church to have different gifts and abilities and that no gift is greater than any other. This is definitely a great message, but there is another lesson in this chapter that often gets overlooked.

In verses 25 and 26, Paul writes: “so that there should be no division in the body, but that its parts should have equal concern for each other. If one part suffers, every part suffers with it; if one part is honored, every part rejoices with it.” I recently hurt my ankle playing softball and the doctors think that I have a torn ligament. So for the past week and a half, I have been hobbling around on crutches trying to keep up with teenagers and make it up the stairs at my apartment. But my injury has helped me develop a greater appreciation for the idea that Paul presents in verses 25 and 26. Because of the injury to my ankle, my entire body has suffered. My whole left leg has been exhausted from holding the entire weight of my body and my arms, hands, and wrists have been sore from doing half of my walking that they are definitely not used to.

I’ve realized this past week just how important it is, not only for every “body part” to play it’s role, but for the other parts of the body to be ready and willing to step up and carry the weight and tasks of the body when an individual part has been injured. The same is true in our church today. Not only is it important for every individual to understand and DO his/her role in the church. It is also important for us (the people a.k.a. body parts) to be there for each other when someone else has been “injured.” It may be an actual physical injury, an emotional injury, or a spiritual injury; but I promise you that there are those in our church that are hurting and needing comfort. You may be the one that is hurt but trying to act like your not. I hope you wouldn’t ignore a broken foot and continue to walk on it. You need to recognize the problem and allow an opportunity for it to heal. If you are hurting, don’t be too prideful to admit it and ask for help. The rest of your “church body” would love to be there for you. Remember: “If one part suffers, every part suffers with it, if one part is honored, every part rejoices with it.”

A New Injury!

Well, I've dislocated my shoulder so many times that it was starting to get boring so I've decided to venture out and discover new ways to injure myself. So, last Friday night, I found a new way; although it really feels like I just decided to pick up where Kiley left off. While pitching with the bases loaded the ball was slowly grounded back about half way between me and home. I picked it up and decided to just step on home when I realized that the person running home was much faster than I had originally realized, so I went a little faster and as I was about to tag him, he slid. I tagged him out but to keep from stepping on him, I guess I planted my toe into the ground while the rest of my momentum carried forward. Needless to say, I (and my catcher) heard my ankle pop about 3 times. Knowing that I had slightly sprained my ankle, I waited for the ump to call the runner out (I was prepared to argue if he'd had been called safe). He called him out, I made my way to the dugout when all the sudden the adrenaline wore off and my ankle just started killing me. I couldn't put any pressure on it and when I looked down it was already swollen out of my shoe. I quickly realized that I wasn't gonna be able to "walk it off" like I had originally planned and made my way off the field to lay down, elevate and ice it. Eventually, as the pain got so bad that I was turning pale and shaking, we decided to go to a doctor. Nothing broken, but severely sprained with a possible torn ligament or two (which would be much worse than a break). I haven't been able to walk on it after 4 days and crutches while living on the second floor of an apartment has gotten real annoying. I've decided that dislocating a shoulder is much better than hurting anything that effects walking. Here are some pictures showing how swollen it all is from shin to toes.