My mother taught me to walk briskly wherever I go. She said that way people know you are not interested in foolishness. Dad walked so fast I always had to jog to keep up with him. When you walk that way it leaves people with the impression that you’re up to something important and that you are serious about what you’re doing.
I was striding into the hospital for a visit one morning in my blue blazer and crisp gray slacks, with a fresh-pressed oxford shirt and a tasteful tie. My shoes were shined and buffed and I was trying to leave the impression that I was up to something important and that I was serious about my work.
Then I made the mistake of taking a short cut. I strode across a little strip of grass instead of walking around it. My chin was up and I was watching a trio of elderly ladies coming toward me. Suddenly my foot caught on a wire supporting a small tree and I was on the ground. There was no catching myself. I went down and hard, stumbling from the curb onto the asphalt parking lot, and landed at the feet of the ladies.
I was embarrassed and sprang immediately to my feet. The ladies clustered around me and brushed off my jacket asking if I was OK. “My,” one of them said, “You certainly took a spill.” “I’m all right, thank you,” I lied. Another said; “Well, I will say this, you do recover well.”
Stumbles are inevitable, especially when we are trying to look important, but one skill we should all work on is getting up off the ground after a fall, brushing off, and going on. Even Christians sometimes fall, but because of Calvary we can get back on our feet and go on. Solomon said that a righteous person may fall seven times, but he will get up again. (Proverbs 24:6) When you do fall, learn to recover well.
(Stonebridge Newsletter – Number 58)
