Penix's Rehab Journey

Calling the Atlanta Falcons' offense disastrous at the start of the 2026 regular season may be an understatement.

Through its first two contests, Atlanta's offense managed a mere 16 points (the league-worst total) and failed to enter the red zone even once. 

But that offensive ineptitude did a quick about-face on Thursday night, as the Falcons steamrolled the Green Bay Packers 35-14 at Lambeau Field, accumulating nearly 500 yards of total offense during the process.

A significant reason for the sudden offensive resurgence was the introduction of third-year quarterback Michael Penix into the starting lineup. 

Penix, who tore his ACL in November of 2025, was finally healthy enough to take the gridiron after missing the first two games of the season. And while he did throw an interception on the first drive of the evening, he bounced back nicely to throw for 256 yards and a score as he led a Falcons offense that was in complete control. 

It's hard to believe that just a few weeks ago Penix was allegedly crying in the locker room before a preseason contest because he was so distraught over his injury and the fact that he couldn't be on the field to help his team.   

Penix may have been emotional about his injury, but he channeled that emotion into a grueling rehab regimen that ultimately helped him return to the field.

Head coach Kevin Stefanski said of Penix and his recovery journey, “It's not easy to rehab from injuries. That's a tough thing to do when he's putting himself through the extra workouts in the weight room, the extra treatments in the training room. All those times that he's out on the field running and no one was watching. It's just him, the trainers, and the medical staff. So proud of all of that.”

The reality of successfully recovering from NFL injuries is that it's rarely glamorous. Rehab almost always involves a lot of emotion and even more behind-the-scenes work. But when a player uses that emotion as fuel to push through and do the hard work of recovery, they typically experience positive results.

As followers of Jesus, we all need our own versions of “rehab” as we live out our faith. 

Because we all continue to sin even after we’re saved, we will eventually succumb to “injuries” as we experience the consequences of our sinful choices. 

But when we find ourselves needing to “rehab” from our sin, we can learn a lot from how Penix handled the process.

For starters, it's good and appropriate for us to be emotional and mourn over our sin. 

Though our sin doesn't separate us from God or bring condemnation if we trust in Christ alone for salvation, we should still mourn that we have dishonored God by sinning against the One who has shown us ultimate love and kindness. 

2 Corinthians 7:10 (ESV) tells us, “For godly grief produces a repentance that leads to salvation without regret, whereas worldly grief produces death.”

Godly grief is God-oriented grief. Rather than simply being sorrowful over the consequences of our sin, we are grieved by how our sin has offended God. 

This godly grief is intended to fuel and motivate us to become more holy and righteous in how we live here on earth. Though we recognize that our good works don’t contribute to our salvation, recognizing what Christ has done for us motivates us to “rehab” from our sin and become more godly for His glory.

After speaking of godly grief in 2 Corinthians 7:10, the Apostle Paul continues in the very next verse by saying, “For see what earnestness this godly grief has produced in you, but also what eagerness to clear yourselves, what indignation, what fear, what longing, what zeal, what punishment! At every point you have proved yourselves innocent in the matter.”

The Corinthians didn’t simply sit still to praise the Lord for the forgiveness they had in Christ. Rather, it produced in them an intense desire to grow in their faith and character to better honor the Lord. 

Once we have experienced godly grief over our sin, the next step is to grow in godliness. 

Just as Penix did much of his rehab when no one was watching, much of our sanctification will happen out of the spotlight as we get a “workout” in the means of grace God has given us for growth.

We don’t “rehab” from sins simply by grieving over them. Growing in godliness takes hard work. It often means countless times spent seeking the Lord in prayer, reflecting on the condition of our heart, and studying the Bible out of the spotlight.

1 Timothy 4:7-8 (NIV) says, “Have nothing to do with godless myths and old wives’ tales; rather, train yourself to be godly. For physical training is of some value, but godliness has value for all things, holding promise for both the present life and the life to come.”

As we take time to engage in the means of grace God has provided for growth, we will gradually find ourselves growing in Christlikeness.

Today, let’s take some time to reflect on how our sins have dishonored our great God. But rather than being driven to despair, let's be grateful for Christ’s sacrifice, which covers our sins, and let's be motivated and driven to pursue godliness to the glory of God.

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

PRAYER: Heavenly Father, please forgive me for the sins that I have committed against You. I ask that You help me grow in godliness so my life brings You the honor You deserve. In Jesus’ name, I pray. Amen.