The Virginia Tech basketball team got a big home win (80-78) over their in-state rival and 12th-ranked Virginia in double-overtime on Sunday night. Virginia Tech won when Seth Allen hit a shot with just over 3 seconds left to secure the upset. UVA actually had a strong chance to win in the first overtime until something crazy happened. The score was tied at 68, with under 30 seconds left, when Virginia’s London Perrantes drove through the lane and put up a solid layup that would have given his team the lead with 21 seconds left on the clock. The problem was, however, the ball didn’t make it through the net. Instead, it bounced around and incredibly ended up stuck on the very back part of the rim. As the ball remained on the rim, the refs called it a jump ball with the possession arrow pointing toward Virginia Tech.
This unlikely situation ended up being a key turning point in the game, which benefited VT as they went on to get the win. That image of the ball being in a stuck position, and UVA feeling helpless, illustrates a feeling we have all experienced from time to time.
There are many of us today who feel like we’re stuck in a bad situation and things aren’t going the way we had hoped. We need something to happen, but there's no movement and we're really struggling. Maybe it’s a standstill in our career or we're in a relationship where pushing through seems difficult. We can totally relate to that silly ball on the back of the rim being stuck because we feel stuck too.
Unfortunately, we also go through seasons of feeling spiritually stuck. When God doesn't appear to be moving in our lives, we can lose our passion for Him. We can become spiritually drained by relying too much on our own strength during these challenging times.When we find ourselves “sitting on the back of the rim” waiting for God to move, we must continue seeking Him with all of our hearts and trusting Him to get us unstuck. Even when He seems silent, we can be assured He’s working in our lives and remaining faithful. Psalm 143:8 (NLT) reminds us that we can cry out to God with these words: "Let me hear of Your unfailing love each morning, for I am trusting You. Show me where to walk, for I give myself to You."
We can be confident of His ultimate response by claiming Psalm 32:8 (NLT): "The Lord says, 'I will guide you along the best pathway for your life. I will advise you and watch over you.'"
There is great value and purpose when being stuck forces us to be still before the Lord and rest in Him. Thankfully, when we feel like that ball on the back of the rim, we can trust the possession arrow points toward Him and His plan leads to victory. I’m Bryce Johnson and you can UNPACK that!
PRAYER: Heavenly Father, I pray that You would use my current situation where I feel stuck to draw me closer to You. I pray that I wouldn’t give up, but instead push through with Your strength. I pray that I would rest in You and Your love. I pray this in Jesus’ name, Amen.
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