A.J. McCarron, now a backup quarterback for the Cincinnati Bengals, had a spectacular college football career, leading Alabama Crimson Tide football to two national titles. It is quite amazing that he is able to play sports at all—or is even alive. When he was 5, he was badly hurt in a jet ski accident. It affected his skull, the side of his face, and one eye.

Doctors initially told his mother he had two hours to live. Gradually, the prognosis improved a bit to include permanent brain damage and loss of sight, but A.J. pulled through and improved enough eventually to become a world-class athlete. McCarron says, “God gave me a second chance. I was going to make the most of it. I feel like I have. I don’t take life for granted.”

Our stories may not be as dramatic as McCarron’s, and they might not be about physical survival. The truth is we all have been given second chances by God, and we should not take that for granted.