Thoughts and prayers

Do you watch NFL football? As a child growing up in St. Louis, I cheered for two St. Louis Cardinals teams. We had the baseball team and the football team of the same name. As a matter of fact, I got an autographed photo of Jim Hart who came to my elementary school, and then when in high school, Otis Anderson and Roy Green attended our football banquet my freshman year.

One of the tragic events I remember from the offseason was when J.V. Cain died during a football practice. He had a congenital heart defect. According to eyewitnesses, it was not football related. It was July 22, 1979, on his birthday, when he took two steps then collapsed to the ground at Lindenwood college. He later died in the hospital.

I was reminded of this Monday night when Damar Hamlin of the Buffalo Bills made a tackle, stood to his feet, then dropped lifeless to the ground. At first, I assumed it was a head or neck injury, but we soon heard reports of him receiving CPR. At the time of this writing, he is in stable but critical condition. I am praying that he makes a full recovery.

As significant as Monday night's game was to Kansas City Chiefs fans (Missouri's faithful franchise), I was watching a documentary with my family instead of the game. I have learned that there are more important things than watching every minute of a sporting event. Of course, I did not gain that level of maturity until I could record games or watch a recap on YouTube. No more rushing home after church for me.

I received an alert from KFVS on my phone, so I stopped and announced it to my family, and we prayed for the young man. We did not realize at that moment how prayer was breaking out inside and outside of the stadium for this one player. It was spontaneous.

Are you as offended as I am when politicians and activists mock the phrase, "thoughts and prayers"? When tragedy strikes, and we are helpless, we instinctively turn to God. That is unless we harden our hearts towards him. It is unnatural to not believe in God.

Because of general revelation, things we can see, most cultures have developed some form of religion. Special revelation helps us to know God by reading the biblical accounts of his interactions with people. We learn about the person and work of Jesus. Our sense of right and wrong develops as we gain spiritual understanding. Society is chaotic without a moral code.

For some people, stricter laws are the only solution to violence committed with guns. Those of us who suggest that hearts must change for violence to cease are ridiculed. Many of us are convinced that law abiding citizens have a constitutional right to keep and bear arms, and that responsible gun ownership has many benefits. However, gun rights opponents are crossing the line when they scoff at the offer of thoughts and prayers.

The value of a human life is more important than sports entertainment. This reality snapped us all to attention Monday night. The right decision was made to postpone the game -- we still do not know how it will turn out for Hamlin.

Sadly, there are people who want to attack others for how they handled this situation. Yes, the game was really important and in the past, players rode off in an ambulance and the game continued. However, there is a big difference between a torn ligament and a heart that stops beating. There was no difference in the love that was shown to Hamlin than there would have been for any other player.

We saw people from both teams huddled together in prayer. There were men, women and many ethnicities kneeling side by side. This is a reminder that there is more that unites us than divides us.

Have there been times in your life when all you wanted or needed were thoughts and prayers?