This week so many people saw the injury to Buffalo Bills defense player Damar Hamlin on live TV as it happened. In fact, it was the most watched NFL game on ESPN in years, something like over 22 million were watching. It just so happened that this heavily watched game included an injury unlike any in recent history. I’m sure you know the details about the CPR and the AED and how both teams pretty much immediately and totally forgot about football as they all rallied around Hamlin. Well, across the nation people rallied in the form of prayer. A radio show host I listen to brought up a profound point: this might be the most “prayed for” person simultaneously in world history. In other words, all at the same moment, millions of people were praying for Damar Hamlin. There was also a prayer prayed on ESPN.
The more I thought about the amount of unified prayer happening all at once, the more remarkable it was to grasp. I prayed too, but not very eloquently. All I could say is, “God, you HAVE to come through. We NEED you to come through. PLEASE come through.”
So let me be clear, I wasn’t telling God he has to do this, as if I’m giving HIM a command. Like, you have to do this or else! I would never, ever do that. Here’s what that prayer meant… because of the amount of people praying, so many counting on God to come through, it became a matter of reputation. God’s reputation is/was on the line. If he weren’t to come through, how many folks would say something like, “See, God doesn’t care. God isn’t real.” But then, God has shown that he DOES care. God IS real. He was in a situation I think he loves to be in. One where a gigantic mass of people were desperate for him to act, and he could’t NOT show up.
Of course, we can also be extremely grateful for the expert medical staff from the beginning of the injury all the way through to this very second. Praising God isn’t ignoring the highly skilled people who were part of the miracle that’s happening. They are to be revered and respected, without a doubt! But along with them, it was the prayers that moved God to act, too.
It’s just a very cool situation coming out of a very tragic situation. Of course, Hamlin not suffering the way he did would have been great, too. The game would’ve went along as planned. One of the teams would have the W. People would have turned the TV off and gone to bed. But because of the crazy event that night, look at the life being breathed back into the spiritual world. The comradery among the players, coaches, etc, and sports fans everywhere. Unification across the country.
I, for one, won’t forget these moments.
See y’all tomorrow…
-Out of the Wilderness
Out of the Wilderness 