The
wisdom of God is found all around us even in the most unusual places and all
that is required of us by God is to be discerning to learn and act. Thus, the
amazing and miraculous recovery of fabric Muamba from ‘death’ on the pitch
during a game with Tottenham Spurs is a minefield of faith lessons from which
we can appropriate into our lives. Excerpts from him, his father Marcel and
fiancée, Shauna’s story in the British newspaper, Sun of 22 & 23rd April will be used to reveal God’s
wisdom for us to learn.
HAVE A DAILY CONSISTENT FAITH LIFESTYLE
How
often do Christians acknowledge their faith in their careers? Rather we expend much time and resources
building up our knowledge in books, seminars and any self development
programme. Good but a consistent prayer life about your career and allowing
Christ to guide you is what will ultimately provide the key to your survival as
seen in Fabrice’s life. The Scriptures
in proverbs 3.3-5 tell us to “Trust
in the Lord with all your hear and lean not on your own understanding. In all
your ways acknowledge Him and He shall direct your paths” nkjv
How
regularly do we commit our lives and career to God for in times of sudden
adversity, there is usually no time to pray. Preparation is very important to
your success and survival as the lifestyle of Fabrice shows. In his words
“On Saturday, my dad called me at the team
hotel and we prayed like we alwys do before games”
Shauna “I held his hand. Fabrice reads verses from
the Bible everyday so I borrowed one and began reading out psalms to him”
The
conclusion in Fabrice’s words “I asked
God to protect me and He didn’t let me down.”
I am walking proof of the power of prayer.
For 78minutes I was dead and even if I lived was expected to have suffered
brain damage.
TRUST GOD ABOVE ALL THINGS.
When
fabric fell on the pitch, he was fortunate to have immediate and appropriate
medical intervention before he was taken to the London Chest Hospital where
doctors battled to save him yet the family (father and fiancée) didn’t place
their trust in medical intervention even though they were respectful of it. A
good lesson to many who give up because of various medical reports and facts of
life rather than putting their trust in Christ the Healer and Saviour.
Marcel
locked himself in the hospital toilet and prayed
“I told God, please take care of
everything.
“Then I said to God, you are the One who
resurrected Lazarus from the dead, now in this moment glorify yourself”
Marcel
and Shauna chose to place their trust in God to come through for fabric and
they received of what they believed. Isn’t that what Jesus, the Word taught us
in Mark 11.24?
“I say to you whatever things you ask when
you pray, believe that you receive them and you will have them”nkjv
Faith is
a prerequisite for prayer and not the reverse. Many people don’t really trust
God when they pray because their heart is full of fear and anxiety and
sometimes a weak or nonexistent relationship with God and so they find it
difficult to BELIEVE BEFORE PRAYING. Therefore the consequence is that they
never receive and frustration sets in and with continued ignorance of the real
problem (faith issue), they get angry with God and people.
A POSITION OF REST COMES FROM FAITH
When we
are faced with challenges of any kind, a natural response of concern, anxiety
comes at us like a fast flying object in our path but where the chaff of
unbelief is shifted from the wheat of faith is in our response. Too often
because we are not grounded in faith (not theoretical/mental assent of
scripture but practice), panic sets in and eventually leading to decisions and
consequences taken in error.
But a
person of faith despite looming challenges and fears responds with a faith
position and thereby enters a place of inner rest about the matter.
In Hebrews 4.2, it says “...but the word
which they heard did not profit them not being mixed with faith in those who
heard it. For we who have believe do enter that rest as He said”nkjv
The rest
of God is the overwhelming and inexplicable assurance within that everything is
okay contrary to all facts. Such was the case with Marcel about his son’s
condition. It was very serious and impossible yet he was not moved. His words
“I was obviously very concerned that fabric
would not make it but our faith is very strong and I really believed God would
answer my prayers to save him. Inside the van, I remember calmly turning to the
Bolton Chairman Phil Gartside and saying”Fabrice will be fine” he probably
thought I was crazy. But somehow I knew fabric would be safe in God’s hands.”
It is
easy to be distracted at such a time but we must be resolute to find hope and
comfort in The Word that cannot FAIL.
DEALING WITH UNBELIEF
How do
you handle the actions of people in the face of your faith stand in impossible
situations? Do you cower at their facts and figures that are right or you rest
in the assurance of the Word. In life, we will sometimes have to deal with
unbelief from others but we don’t have to cave in rather stand firm in our
victory. That was Marcel’s position in relation to the opinion of doctors and
others about his son’s critical situation.
“People around me at the time were amazed
at how calm I was after I prayed and how sure I was that Fabrice would be ok. They
thought I was blocking things out and just refusing to let myself believe my
son was going to die because I couldn’t accept what was happening. At that
stage, many people believed even if he survived he would end up brain damaged
and could never be his old self”
His
resolute stand? “But I was calm
because I had put my trust in God and God did not let me down”
Listen
to Shauna, his fiancée
“Doctors told me to expect Fab to be brain
damaged” but she refused to accept that medical report and instead turned to
God’s Word to read to him scriptures from the Book of Psalms. It was
as if she was saying (in my own words to
describe her thoughts) “I don’t deny your facts but I would rather choose God’s
word as the final report on this matter”
It helps
when you can find support from people of like minds in times of crisis and
trials. Such was the comfort from Fabrice’s father
“He told her” Fabrice will be fine” She
said of him” His faith is incredibly strong. That really helped calm me down
CHALLENGES ARE A COMPONENT OF LIFE ON EARTH
Dealing
with problems that arise in our daily lives is often a daunting task yet it is
a part of life. You can’t wish it away neither is denial a way out. But
confronting such issues with faith in the promises of God is what is expected
of us. Unfortunately bad things happen to good people and it is normal to ask
why me? Fabric did that too. He couldn’t understand why he had to go through
such a life threatening experience. In his words
“I never had any problems with my heart or
major organ and there’s no history of heart disease in my family. And on that
day, I remember feeling particularly fit and was really looking forward to the
march”
Yet the inevitable happened.
His
fiancée said” Fab’s the most clean
living person I know. He doesn’t drink or eat junk foods and is always the
player who stays for extra training”
Even the
doctors at the London Chest Hospital are still baffled that despite a battery
of tests on him, it has failed to reveal the cause of his collapse. They call his recovery, one of the most
amazing in medical history.
Thinking
on this, I am reminded that we live in a world that has evil influences. The
scriptures tell us that our enemy, satan’s only agenda is to “steal, kill and destroy” (John10.10). Yet Jesus gave us the Word
of assurance in times such as these that are perplexing. He recognised our
concerns and says
“These things I have spoken to you, that in
Me, you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation but be of good
cheer I have overcome the world” John 16.22nkjv
This was
at the heart of Marcel concerning his son that he believed Christ had overcome
the challenge and indeed it was.
WHAT IS YOUR CONFESSION IN ADVERSITY
There is
tremendous power in words we speak especially as a people of faith. Proverbs
18.21 says” death and life are in the
power of the tongue and they who indulge in it shall eat the fruit of it (for
death or life)”Amplified.
Throughout
his son’s ordeal, Marcel never wavered from his position of faith which was
expressed in the words he spoke to God, doctors, Bolton Club Chairman, his
son’s fiancée and even to Fabrice in his unconscious state. It was a consistent
word of life over his son. He recalled
“I told Fabrice” I know you are listening
to me. I am telling you that you will come out of this hospital through the
front door and not the back door”
It is
easy to consider the various issues we have to deal with including unpleasant
conditions of life and speak out of those experiences instead of the Word but
you must exercise spiritual discipline over your tongue. Failure to do this will
only allow what was never intended to happen. Never, ever speak words that
negate God’s promises regardless of whatever facts, reports and opinion to the
contrary.
Marcel could have chosen the overwhelming
doctor’s report and bleak conditions over his son’s life but he REFUSED and the
result is what he got – a miraculous recovery that has astounded
medical science and triumphed over impossible circumstances.
I hope
you will allow these spiritual truths to encourage and convict you wherever you
presently stand in your faith life. We need to live by the spirit always in
other to overcome the unexplainable and unexpected adversities of life.
Fabrice’s story can be yours in any area of life. It is a tale about the power of the unseen over the natural. Faith in
God caused him to walk out in an impossible situation. That can be your story
too.
The
question is do you live more of a sense led life or from the spirit? The Word
states
For our light affliction which is for a
moment worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory. While
we look not at the things which are seen but at the things which are not seen:
for the things which are seen are temporal; but the things which are not seen
are eternal.” Kjv
I pray
that your faith will continually grow as you live the spirit led life. At all
times be prepared by maintaining a faith lifestyle for in the end that is what
really counts – your salvation in all things. As it happened with Fabrice, so
is it possible for you too.
