Asking questions is a major part of what I do as a Baptist newspaper writer/editor. I spend a lot of time asking questions in order to seek answers.
The key is knowing what questions to ask and when to ask them.
Last week, millions of people were watching the NFL Monday Night Football game when Buffalo Bills defensive player Damar Hamlin collapsed on the field after making a tackle on wide receiver Tee Higgins of the Cincinnati Bengals.
It was not the typical tackle that makes you cringe when you see it. He did not writhe in pain on the ground or grasp his knee or ankle, the body parts most likely to be seriously injured on a tackle.
Instead, Hamlin got up immediately, but then collapsed and actually stopped breathing. Credit medical personnel for administering CPR to get his heart started again. It wasn’t just them. People began praying for that young man immediately and God heard those prayers.
Thankfully, on Thursday of last week, God answered more prayers and Hamlin was alert and showing signs of improvement though he was still listed in critical condition.
Lonnie Wilkey
Immediately after the play, people all over the nation began asking questions: What caused a 24-year-old professional athlete to collapse with cardiac arrest? Will he recover? Will the football game resume? (Thankfully, it did not). What will happen with the remainder of the NFL season? And, the list goes on.
The questions about the football game were definitely inappropriate at the time and even in the ensuing days when no one really knew if Hamlin would regain consciousness.
Football needed to take a back seat. What was and remains important is the condition of Damar Hamlin. Continue to pray that he will recover.
I have looked at several art- icles and listened to talk radio shows but I have not heard or read that this question was asked, “Is Damar Hamlin a believer in Jesus Christ?”
I pray that he is.
Based on things that have been posted on social media — both by Hamlin himself and others — he appears to be a person who, at the very least, believes in God and the power of prayer.
The incident that happened on Monday night football is another reminder that none of us is guaranteed the next day or even the next minute.
One minute Hamlin was playing the game he loved and the next minute he was fighting for his life.
We all know people who are in life and death situations with cancer, heart issues and more.
Have we asked them the question that matters most of all — do you know Jesus as your Lord and Savior?
As the new year gets underway, we, as Christians, need to be more intentional in asking that question. Life is precious and should never be taken for granted. Job 14:5 reminds us that man’s days are numbered.”
None of us know when God will call us home. We need to make sure we are ready and that we do our part in helping others to be ready.
May we all resolve to ask, “Do you know Jesus” during 2023. B&R
