Luke said the experience was unexplainable. It left him in “complete shock” after he went through an excruciating year that left him feeling death was his only way out. Instead, God showed him that He was the way out.
Suddenly, his thoughts of suicide, anxiety and depression were all gone. It’s like he was a new person. He didn’t recognize himself…and it was beautiful.
The only words that Luke could find were, “Thank you. Thank you.”
He repeated those words incessantly, as they were the only ones that his tongue could formulate.
Ever since that moment, Luke decided he wanted to show God gratitude in everything he did — including the football field.
So after every touchdown his senior year, Luke would bend a knee in the end zone and point his finger toward the sky to give God credit for his accomplishment.
But not everyone approved of his touchdown routine. As his team headed into round 2 of the play-offs, Luke was told by the refs that if he did it again, he would be taken out of the game.
“I was completely devastated,” said Luke. “What I play for is to glorify God. I decided I was just going to do it and if I got thrown out, then I got thrown out. I wouldn’t even be here right now if it wasn’t for God saving me.”
But to encourage him at half-time, his sister slipped him a note that simply read: “Be patient and let God work.”
So that’s what he did.
When Luke scored the next touchdown, he didn’t point his finger up at God, but to his amazement, he turned around to see the 7,000 people in the stands doing the gesture for him.
Luke said, “I felt like God said, ‘Listen, Luke, I told you Satan would come at you and I would separate it.’”
And his story still wasn’t over. Because of his amazing play, Luke was recruited to play for Morehead State University in Kentucky.
At the beginning of his sophomore season, he suffered a severe ankle injury that required surgery. But the doctor who operated on him accidentally performed surgery on both of his ankles.Luke later broke his wrist, which required another surgery, and he ended up contracting MRSA from an infection related to the procedure.
Doctors told him he would probably never get to wear his uniform again.
Then six weeks later, the doctor called with news that floored him:
“He said, ‘Hey, are you sitting down?’ I’m thinking oh no, what else is going to come up,” Luke says. “He said, ‘I just wanted to tell you that God has blessed you. Your blood work is perfect. It’s completely back to normal.’”
Luke couldn’t believe his ears.