Call the masseur!

MICHELLE AKERS was one of the best women's football players of all time. She was a 1991 World Cup winner and Olympic gold medal winner in 1996 with the US team.

Few people know that Michelle had had 13 operations on her knee and thought she would never play again. "I've spent too much time on crutches and ice to get my knee back in shape," she said. Her trust in God was the only thing that kept her going.

Injury is one of the things athletes fear most. Sometimes it's not too bad, and the masseur can put it right; but at other times, injuries are hard to heal, and there's no quick fix. If we ask which is the most serious, people usually name injuries to the extremities. However, the worst harm is caused by injuries that affect the heart.

Nothing goes straight to the heart like sin; it lives within us. No human remedy can solve this problem. We can't do anything about our own evil. That's right, evil. That's strong language, but that's what's in every human heart. Do you know what sin is? God says it means:

• Missing the mark


• Doing something carelessly


• Any kind of deceit or wrongdoing


• Anything apart from its original purpose


• All injustice


• Disobedience to God

Not one person in the world can say that they don't have these problems. Everyone is a sinner - yes, including you. God says that the wages of sin are death, simply because nothing evil can live in a perfect world.

God says, "Your wound is incurable". Whatever you do, you can't heal your worst wound. That's why God provides a remedy. Everyone who comes to Jesus Christ has been healed of this incurable wound.

That doesn't mean you'll never sin again; it means that sin no longer is your master. God himself has healed your mortal wound. Remember: if you don't come to Jesus, that wound will kill you. If he is not your Master, you're incurable.