The Light Is Now

After a season-ending injury that happened long before my basketball season even started, I was faced with a mountain I was not sure how I would overcome. Because I had previously torn and recovered fully from ACL and meniscus surgery, I immediately grasped onto the recovery process. I had overcome the injury before and knew all the steps I needed to take to return to my fast-paced lifestyle and get back on the court. Dealing with feelings of pain, fear, depression, and jealousy, I latched my hope onto the fact that there was light at the end of the tunnel – in nine months I would be happy and healthy again.

Three months into my recovery, I can testify that my initial thought process was entirely wrong. Through the grace of God and the blessing of a wonderful community, I quickly learned I did not have to battle every day for nine months to be happy again, but I have everything I need (and more) right now. God is not withholding--instead, He is a never-failing, all-powerful provider. I tried to live in darkness, but His light is too bright to be hidden. 

Laying in my living room post-surgery with nothing to offer, God sent me community. This community had been forming over the last year, but I did not realize what the Lord was doing until my injury. This reminded me that our perspectives are so small and that even when it does not feel like it, God is always working! If we rely on our own capacity to understand, our faith will forever be limited. For about ten days I could do nothing but lie in bed or go to physical therapy. My spirits should have been crushed. I should have felt alone and discluded from life. But somehow, I was never alone during that time. If you are reading this and you are one of the people that visited me, reached out to me, or prayed for me, thank you so much. Through your love and support, I truly encountered the love of Jesus.  

Today I miss my sport terribly, and physical therapy is hard, but in my weakness the Lord provides strength. Jesus tells us in John 8:12

“I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness but will have the light of life.”

In Christ, there is no darkness at all and He promises us fullness of life. With or without basketball, with or without a functioning knee, Jesus is King and His promises of steadfast love and peace are available to us all today. 

The light is not at the end of the tunnel – the light is now.   

Sallie Vick

Sallie volunteers as a Technical Director and CG-op on Sundays and is interning with our video team this year. She constantly adds value to people in the way she initiates and includes others, and she models a heart of worship in everything she does. – The Learning Together Team