For the record, I LOVE Allyson Felix.
Just wanted to put that out there. But in addition to that news flash, I have to add that I'm not sure whether to rejoice the Olympics are over so I can finally get something accomplished and get to bed at a decent hour...or whether to despair, well, because it's over. Sigh.
Yes, I'm a total Olympics geek. My family has banished me more than once (okay, it's been multiple times) to another room due to my whooping and hollering. In fact, I'm stunned NBC never came calling to ask me to come to Rio to help with the commentating and cheering. I was so ready to join the Today show team of Natalie, Al, Hoda, and Matt, but somehow that message never go through. Oh well, maybe next time.
Yes, I'm a total Olympics geek. My family has banished me more than once (okay, it's been multiple times) to another room due to my whooping and hollering. In fact, I'm stunned NBC never came calling to ask me to come to Rio to help with the commentating and cheering. I was so ready to join the Today show team of Natalie, Al, Hoda, and Matt, but somehow that message never go through. Oh well, maybe next time.
After all, when it comes to yelling and cheering, I'm on a first name basis with Michael, Simone (both of them), Katie, Laurie, Gwen, and David, to name just a few. I adore them all. But oh my, I love, love, love Allyson Felix. To watch her long, loping stride as she races so gracefully and (seemingly) effortlessly down the track is poetry in motion.
But more than that, Allyson's a Christ follower who consistently exhibits incredible grace under pressure. She's dealt with one setback after another this year, and yet here she is, winning Olympic silver and gold medals. As she recently told one reporter, "I'm currently a work in progress and like anyone else I face struggles every day. My goal is to be more Christ-like each and every day and that is not an easy task. I know that I'm trying to be something different from [other Olympic runners] and after I run I hope that people can distinguish [Christ-like] character in the way I present myself." That's knowing you're a sinner saved by grace who's humbly seeking to be salt and light in this world. And isn't that what we're all called to do?--make a difference for Christ wherever He sovereignly choses to place us.
I do have to say that one of my favorite memories from this Olympics will also be one of the toughest moments--when the USA women dropped the baton in the 4X100 Relay semifinals and were apparently disqualified and out of the race. Turns out Allyson dropped the baton in the handoff, because she was bumped and interfered with by the Brazilian runner in the next lane. It was a devastating turn of events, but to Allyson's credit, she quickly calmed down enough to tell the next runner to pick up the baton and finish the race, so the team would be allowed to make a formal protest. (Apparently, in order to lodge the protest, you have to complete the race.)
This all happened the day after Allyson lost out on the gold medal when another runner dove over the finish line to beat her by mere hundreds of a second. And now the talented American relay team was apparently disqualified. All this, by the way, had followed a terrible ankle injury Allyson suffered in the spring that had threatened to keep her out of the Olympics and contributed to her failing to qualify at the US Olympic trials for her strongest event--the 200 meters. She was surely, as my daddy would have put it, "Going through a rough patch."
I digress. The good--no, the fabulous--news is that whatever big dogs decide on these protests, they agreed with the U.S. and the team got another chance! The relay team was permitted to rerun their heat that night and had to race against the clock to gain a spot in the finals. Which they did! With the best time! And no dropped batons!
This has already gone on too long--actually I'm showing remarkable restraint as I'd love to give you the blow by blow account--so I'll just cut to the quick to say that the USA team won the Olympic gold the next day...with yours truly, and who knows how many other folks, screaming our lungs out the whole way! And they prayed together at the end...which pretty much made me cry. Well that and Allyson's comment to the reporters that her grandmother had told her earlier that day that God wouldn't give her more than she could handle. Well that and also her tweet quoting my hero, Eric Liddell, "God made me fast. And when I run, I feel His pleasure."
But here's what has stuck with me since that race. One, when you fail, don't quit. Pick the baton back up and get back in the race. God can do remarkable and even beautiful things with our failures. After all, the joy of that relay team's victory was multiplied exponentially by the fact that they almost didn't have the opportunity to run in the finals. Failure and difficulty gives us wiser perspective and teaches us valuable lessons we'd never learn if we had nothing but success. So don't quit...ever. And don't wallow in your failures. Yeah, maybe scream in frustration like Allyson did for a moment or two...but then pick up that dang baton and get back to running! (I'm preaching to myself!)
And second, need I say it? Pass. The. Baton. We're on this planet only a brief millisecond of time in terms of eternity. God's given work to each of us to do for Him, and He calls us to hold that baton of faith and then...pass it on. Pass that baton faithfully. Pass that baton joyfully. Pass that baton intentionally. Pass that baton hopefully. Pass that baton perseveringly.
Pass that baton of faith to your children. Pass it to your friends. Pass it to your neighbors. Pass it to whomever God brings into your lane and life. Pass it in whatever work and ministry God has assigned to you. No one else can carry and pass on your God-given baton.
It's not how long we live, but how well we pass on the baton of faith. And until you hit the tape and your race is over, you've got loads and loads of batons to pass. Don't give up when you fail or hit life's inevitable roadblocks. Don't give in to feelings of discouragement. Don't give out when you're so near the finish line. Just keep your eyes fixed on Jesus, keep running hard, and pass that baton, by His power, for His glory.
To God be the glory.
But more than that, Allyson's a Christ follower who consistently exhibits incredible grace under pressure. She's dealt with one setback after another this year, and yet here she is, winning Olympic silver and gold medals. As she recently told one reporter, "I'm currently a work in progress and like anyone else I face struggles every day. My goal is to be more Christ-like each and every day and that is not an easy task. I know that I'm trying to be something different from [other Olympic runners] and after I run I hope that people can distinguish [Christ-like] character in the way I present myself." That's knowing you're a sinner saved by grace who's humbly seeking to be salt and light in this world. And isn't that what we're all called to do?--make a difference for Christ wherever He sovereignly choses to place us.
I do have to say that one of my favorite memories from this Olympics will also be one of the toughest moments--when the USA women dropped the baton in the 4X100 Relay semifinals and were apparently disqualified and out of the race. Turns out Allyson dropped the baton in the handoff, because she was bumped and interfered with by the Brazilian runner in the next lane. It was a devastating turn of events, but to Allyson's credit, she quickly calmed down enough to tell the next runner to pick up the baton and finish the race, so the team would be allowed to make a formal protest. (Apparently, in order to lodge the protest, you have to complete the race.)
This all happened the day after Allyson lost out on the gold medal when another runner dove over the finish line to beat her by mere hundreds of a second. And now the talented American relay team was apparently disqualified. All this, by the way, had followed a terrible ankle injury Allyson suffered in the spring that had threatened to keep her out of the Olympics and contributed to her failing to qualify at the US Olympic trials for her strongest event--the 200 meters. She was surely, as my daddy would have put it, "Going through a rough patch."
I digress. The good--no, the fabulous--news is that whatever big dogs decide on these protests, they agreed with the U.S. and the team got another chance! The relay team was permitted to rerun their heat that night and had to race against the clock to gain a spot in the finals. Which they did! With the best time! And no dropped batons!
This has already gone on too long--actually I'm showing remarkable restraint as I'd love to give you the blow by blow account--so I'll just cut to the quick to say that the USA team won the Olympic gold the next day...with yours truly, and who knows how many other folks, screaming our lungs out the whole way! And they prayed together at the end...which pretty much made me cry. Well that and Allyson's comment to the reporters that her grandmother had told her earlier that day that God wouldn't give her more than she could handle. Well that and also her tweet quoting my hero, Eric Liddell, "God made me fast. And when I run, I feel His pleasure."
But here's what has stuck with me since that race. One, when you fail, don't quit. Pick the baton back up and get back in the race. God can do remarkable and even beautiful things with our failures. After all, the joy of that relay team's victory was multiplied exponentially by the fact that they almost didn't have the opportunity to run in the finals. Failure and difficulty gives us wiser perspective and teaches us valuable lessons we'd never learn if we had nothing but success. So don't quit...ever. And don't wallow in your failures. Yeah, maybe scream in frustration like Allyson did for a moment or two...but then pick up that dang baton and get back to running! (I'm preaching to myself!)
And second, need I say it? Pass. The. Baton. We're on this planet only a brief millisecond of time in terms of eternity. God's given work to each of us to do for Him, and He calls us to hold that baton of faith and then...pass it on. Pass that baton faithfully. Pass that baton joyfully. Pass that baton intentionally. Pass that baton hopefully. Pass that baton perseveringly.
Pass that baton of faith to your children. Pass it to your friends. Pass it to your neighbors. Pass it to whomever God brings into your lane and life. Pass it in whatever work and ministry God has assigned to you. No one else can carry and pass on your God-given baton.
It's not how long we live, but how well we pass on the baton of faith. And until you hit the tape and your race is over, you've got loads and loads of batons to pass. Don't give up when you fail or hit life's inevitable roadblocks. Don't give in to feelings of discouragement. Don't give out when you're so near the finish line. Just keep your eyes fixed on Jesus, keep running hard, and pass that baton, by His power, for His glory.
To God be the glory.
No comments:
Post a Comment