Before the Swelling Sets In

When Boston Celtics forward Jayson Tatum ruptured his Achilles tendon during the second round of last season’s playoffs, the prevailing sentiment among experts was that the injury would likely cause the young superstar to miss all of the 2025-26 season.

Just this week, however, Tatum surprised fans across the league by announcing he plans on returning to action Friday against the Dallas Mavericks, a mere nine months after his devastating injury.

To me, the most fascinating aspect of Tatum’s recovery is how the 28-year-old set himself up for a quicker return time by making one prudent decision.

According to medical reports, many athletes end up waiting weeks or sometimes even over a month to have surgery after rupturing their Achilles tendon because the swelling must subside before surgeons can intervene with a successful procedure.

Tatum, on the other hand, elected to have surgery completed the morning after his injury. Because he was able to schedule a quick turnaround from the time his injury occurred to the time of surgery, full swelling had not yet set in, allowing the surgery to proceed successfully.

It may seem like a minor detail, but reports circulating about this decision often indicate that Tatum likely shaved a month or more off his recovery time by scheduling surgery so quickly.     

Had Tatum delayed his surgery, as many people do, there is a very good chance the Celtics would have ultimately elected to sideline him for the entire season to avoid any setbacks that could cause greater long-term damage.

But with his return now set to occur with a little more than a month remaining in the regular season, Boston should have ample time to ease Tatum into action, setting the table for what the franchise hopes will be another deep run in the playoffs.

Tatum's decision to address his injury promptly rather than let it sit and swell offers a powerful parallel for our own spiritual lives.

As we continue to wage war against our remaining sin, all of us will inevitably find that there are times when we are “injured” by it. 

But when we do find ourselves either battling temptation or dealing with the aftermath of a sinful action, we must choose to act quickly on the problem rather than allow “swelling” to take place.

Scripture makes it very clear that the longer we allow temptation or sin to fester in our lives, the more dangerous it becomes to us.

James 1:14-15 (ESV) says, “But each person is tempted when he is lured and enticed by his own desire. Then desire when it has conceived gives birth to sin, and sin when it is fully grown brings forth death.”

When a person doesn’t deal swiftly and thoroughly with the temptation they encounter, it quickly “swells” until they give in. Eventually, one sinful decision left unaddressed can "swell" into a pattern of habitual sin.

Hebrews 3:13 (NASB) tells us, “But encourage one another every day, as long as it is still called ‘today,’ so that none of you will be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin.”

The longer we delay in comprehensively dealing with the temptation and sin that emerges in our lives, the more likely we are to become hardened to that particular sin. 

Although a person might feel a strong sense of conviction after sinning for the first time, if they fail to confess, repent, and make the necessary changes to prevent it from recurring, they can eventually become hardened by it. In other words, they can eventually lose that feeling of conviction, growing numb as they repeatedly engage in the sin.

The Bible gives many exhortations to believers to address their sin and temptation as quickly as possible to prevent “swelling.”

Ephesians 4:26-27 (NIV) says, “‘In your anger do not sin’: Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry, and do not give the devil a foothold.”

When we are dealing with anger, a failure to deal with it before the sun goes down is basically enabling the devil to have increased influence in our lives.

In Matthew 5:23-24 (NIV), Jesus said, “Therefore, if you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother or sister has something against you, leave your gift there in front of the altar. First go and be reconciled to them; then come and offer your gift.”

Jesus understood that a failure to address relational tensions quickly would only lead to greater problems. As such, He commanded believers to address any relational strife quickly before it could "swell" into something worse.

No matter what temptations or sins we are currently struggling with, the fact remains that the longer we delay addressing them biblically, the more control and influence they will have over our lives, and the longer it will take for us to "recover."

So today, let’s be aware of the temptations and sins that we are currently battling. Instead of “delaying surgery” until a future time, let's take the necessary steps to address the issues as quickly and thoroughly as possible, with the help of the Holy Spirit. 

I’m Matt Osborne, and you can UNPACK that!

PRAYER: Heavenly Father, please help me to be sensitive to the sin and temptations that I face. Please strengthen me to quickly repent and turn from the things that might cause me to dishonor You. Thank you for giving me everything that I need for life and godliness. In Jesus’ name, I pray, Amen.